Merry Christache Friends!

best of 00's movie list

From Ain't It Cool. com... pretty interesting.


1. Irreversible
2. Memento
3. In the Mood for Love
4. 25th Hour
5. No Country for Old Men
6. The Lord of the Rings
7. Yi Yi
8. There Will Be Blood
9. Afterschool
10. You Can Count on Me
11. State and Main
12. Anchorman
13. Shaun of the Dead
14. Primer
15. A.I.: Artificial Intelligence
16. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
17. The New World
18. Dogville
19. What Time Is It There?
20. Spirited Away
21. Songs from the Second Floor
22. Femme Fatale
23. Monsters, Inc.
24. The Man Who Wasn't There
25. A History of Violence
26. When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts
27. Everyone Else
28. Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang
29. Bad Santa (January 2003 Pasadena Test Screening Cut)
30. Gerry
31. Fantastic Mr. Fox
32. Brick
33. Dave Chappelle's Block Party
34. Kill Bill
35. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
36. Up
37. Pan's Labyrinth
38. City of God
39. Goodby Dragon Inn
40. Ghost World
41. Kingdom of Heaven: Director's Cut
42. The Incredibles
43. Jackass: The Movie
44. Audition
45. Black Hawk Down
46. Memories of Murder
47. Inglourious Basterds
48. Spider-Man 2
49. Red Lights
50. Before Sunset
51. Mulholland Dr.
52. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
53. Into the Wild
54. The Pianist
55. Munich
56. Oldboy
57. Burn After Reading
58. Hero
59. Tsotsi
60. The Host
61. Grindhouse
62. Time Out
63. Kairo
64. Time of the Wolf
65. Lake of Fire
66. The Constant Gardener
67. Where the Wild Things Are
68. Superbad
69. WALL-E
70. Brokeback Mountain
71. The Holy Girl
72. United 93
73. The Fountain
74. American Splendor
75. The 40-Year-Old Virgin
76. Miami Vice
77. I Heart Huckabees
78. Nowhere to Hide
79. Ratatouille
80. Late Marriage
81. Drag Me to Hell
82. Adaptation.
83. Code Unknown
84. Chopper
85. Observe and Report
86. The Wayward Cloud
87. Friday Night Lights
88. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
89. Ali
90. Last Days
91. Y Tu Mama Tambien
92. Gone Baby Gone
93. The Squid and the Whale
94. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
95. Raising Victor Vargas
96. The Piano Teacher
97. Wet Hot American Summer
98. Kinsey
99. The Ice Harvest
100. Bring It On

i'm on a roll....

oh man this is great! guaranteed to make you smile.



Happy Thanksgiving!

Fluoridation is the most monstrously conceived and dangerous communist plot we have ever had to face.

I knew it....

for an interesting article on the same issue, check the relevant chapter in this book:

wedding website

my fiance made us a wedding wesite

here - http://www.mywedding.com/andylovesrachel/

So here it is

So as most of you have found out I am now engaged. This past weekend my parents invited Rachel and I to Destin, so we went and while i was there i preposed to her on the beach outside of our condo. She was completely suprised, because i had been telling her for the past few months that there would be now way that I could possibly propose to her before january. i had her friends also lying to her so that she was throrough ly convinced that the proposal wasnt coming soon. So after i proposed we went to dinner with my parents at a resturant that held about 40 people and served some of the best seafood that I have ever eaten. It was a great trip, we are planning to get married around may/june so keep all of your calendars open. Also im reading pride and prejudice and zombies which is incredible, and have been obsessed with girltalk i recently went to one of his shows which was just awesome but he is kinda hipsterish but his music is good. I love you all and miss you guys let me know if yall have any questions.

I promise i will elaborate on this soon

i'm engaged (seriously no bullshit)

Jenny Biggers Game

I recently introduced our beloved friend Jenny Biggers to a precious group of girls at our recent girls' night (which was an incredible night and probably deserves a post of its own). For those of you that haven't met Jenny Biggers, just ask Doug Clapp about her. If you ever ventured on a SOSA excursion then you know who I'm talking about: the girl that was studying one night and invented a game where you ask a multiple choice question about yourself to your friends. Then your friends try to guess the correct answer. A great get-to-know-you game. We always played around the campfire. Can we play on the blog instead?

Example:
In the past month I have attended my first ______ in Malaysia.
A. Funeral
B. Graduation
C. Wedding
D. A and B, but not C
E. B and C, but not A
F. A, B, and C

The answer is obviously E. Of course I went to my friend Debbie's wedding and Helen's graduation!

You get the drift. Now on to my real statement:

One day I was spotted jumping up and down while simultaneously running through a shopping mall. Was I jumping and running because

A. I had just received a coupon from the grocery store for a FREE pineapple frizzle (2nd only to fresh fruit strawberry slush from Sonic) that had to be used within the next 20 minutes?

B. I thought I felt a cockroach crawling underneath my shirt after having found one in my hair only 30 minutes earlier!?

C. An announcement had just been made that my car was about to be towed because it was illegally parked (oops)?

D. It was my birthday and the waiters at TGIFridays had just shoved ice cream and whipped cream all up in my face and hair. It was revenge time.

The Life & Crimes of Larry Langford

So, finally, my bitter arch-rival is going to trial, but thankfully, he has not stopped providing great reading material, including rigging a bingo game worth $20,000... for himself... and casting big dreams for the Birmingham Airport, just in case we'd forgotten how visionary he was(is?) before the mouthpiece of his platform is forever silenced.

This one's brilliant.

Oh, and here's a video of 1979 Larry running for mayor.

Alright. First of all, I sadly believed all those blogs were true. Once I read Abby's I began to think something was a little fishy. Anyway, in honor of the Barb ORear wanna-bes, I will be the first to give an honest account of the past year of my life... for the record... it starts with the most recent and goes down.



I would like to begin by embarrassingly admitting that this is mine and Ryan's 7th year living at Samford. We have gotten only one values violation so far...an RA found Woodchuck in our fridge. Ryan graduates in December 2010. I was kidding about the violation.




Here we are at Yosemite National Park. This summer Ryan and I spent a week in CA doing some site seeing, backpacking, and hanging out with some of our peeps who happened to be in the neighborhood.

Here is one peep I mentioned earlier. This picture was taken while me, Pat, Ryan, Jme, and her mom were biking in San Fran.

Ryan and Cliff still have yet to beat the tanks game. There are 20 levels, I think, and they got to level 18 at one point this year... cant really remember when this happened. It was a momentous occasion regardless.

Ryan had to do an internship for one of his Beeson classes so we got to live in Costa Rica for 3 weeks in June. During that time, we were able to hang out with Susan. It was awesome to see what her life has consisted of while she has been in Costa Rica. I can't tell if those kids are flipping off the camera Costa Rican style...anyway...

In the Spring, I coached the boys and girls tennis team. Here we are in all of our glory. We did alright... we won some but then got killed by teams like Mountain Brook and Vestavia. I am coaching again this Spring but it shouldn't be as stressful this year because they hired a 2nd coach. These next three pictures are from my Middle School's Career Fair this past Spring. Cory, Pat, and Jamie did awesome. Jamie kept forcing kids to give a pretend shot in this black arm which freaked some of the kiddies... but overall it was awesome.

In other news, I have started on my Exercise Physiology masters at UAB. Im just taking one night class a week so it hasn't been too bad. Ryan and I get to now be nerds together, HURRAY!

Anyway. ta-dah. There is a quick run down. You all keep the updates coming! Love you guys!

Two things....

Alright, alright, alright. I guess it's time to clear up some confusion that's been buzzing around this joint for some time now. Here's the deal. (The following words are spoken on behalf of myself and a certain Kristen Straw and Jennifer Wilmore.)

We feel as if some major life events have occurred over the course of the past 5 months and this informative little hot-spot has not been properly utilized in the midst of these grand happenings. Sooo, the three of us (while visiting together in Ethiopia) took it upon ourselves to update everyone on your behalf...and what details we did not know, we made up. It was fun for us really, as we find ourselves thoroughly hilarious. A few of you failed to write of your recent engagements, some forgot to tell us whether or not they had intentions of moving to Birmingham after the two job interviews they had last spring, some have changed jobs, and some have just gone MIA altogether. Our intentions were to subtly yet firmly encourage blog activity.

So, until we get some steady posting around this place, we've got more to come...so without further adieu...Mr. Brian Sharon:

I am currently in the 2nd year of my 23-year doctorate program. So far, I haven’t switched specialties. Yesterday while eating a zebra cake in lab and simultaneously artificially inseminating a lab rat, I had an epiphany. You see, I have felt a bit Eeyore-ish lately, and couldn’t for the life of me figure out what was up. My epiphany occurred when I discovered the date of the onset of my gloom: January 27, 2009. This is the date of my last blog entry.

Since rediscovering the blog, I have vowed to blog on a more regular basis. So here we go. Bought a new house, 14 baby rats were birthed in late April and have since all produced offspring, and I just recently learned of a cranberry patch where I have been invited to pick for free come Spring 2010! And as we all know, 97.9865785% (prime number) of Caucasian, left-handed people of Jewish descent who eat 32 freshly picked cranberries an hour will live an average of 3.28575792 minutes longer than those who never even stumble upon a patch. Lucky me! w00t.

Miss You Guys.

Abby, please email with the details of your Smallia cruise. Things here in Memphis are awesome and I’m growing a lot, but I’m looking forward to the next stage in life. I’ve been thinking about going back to the Horn (of Africa, duh) to a) wear my man skirt, and b) build things for the pierates. I just know that the bunny doctors really need my help. I’ll also have the πrates read the blog every day, so make sure the updates are good or they’ll make me walk the plank! YARG!

Miss you all,

Cheese

A new legacy for Birmingham?

Sign me up.

Read, discuss, you know the drill.

How the Birmingham Charter Could Change The World

xkcd.com

"correlation doesn't imply causation, but it does waggle its eyebrows suggestively and gesture furtively while mouthing, 'look over there'"

Bon Voyage!

So I know it’s been a while, but I’ve recently gone through a lot of big life changes. After I left my job I became bitter toward Corporate America and decided to shun it and all of its technological advances. During the months of solitude and introspection, I came to realize that one of the most important things in life to me is the daily reading of this blog and all that it discloses. Each word is another reason to breathe and imparts new meaning into my life.

Since you all have nourished my soul during these past dark months, I decided that it’s time for you all to feast on the wealth of my experiences. You may have heard about my recent engagement- scratch that- MARRIAGE! Las Vegas Baby!!!! We really enjoyed having The King perform our nuptials. The chapel was styled in a lovely post modern, deco, colonial, gothic, arts and crafts combo. My sugar daddy, Kevin, was so thoughtful to surprise me by picking out this very chapel because he knows how much I love extreme architectural vomit.

Just had to update the blog before we jump on the plane for our Somali pirate cruise honeymoon getaway! Can’t wait to enjoy some seafood, target practice with our renegade friends, and dining on the full entrée of your delicious posts upon our return!

Shout- out to Wardo: I’ve recently become a foodie!!!

Love ya'll,
Abby

El Gato es muy feo.

Our lives since we last blogged:

Moved to Crestwood.

Keith lost job.

Elaine hired at Cornerstone.

Elaine quit job.

Guatemala.

Elaine started at Cornerstone.

Keith bought screen door.

Keith thinks of Kanakuk often.

Elaine picked tomatoes from garden.

Keith takes CPA exam.

Keith got new job.

Elaine applies for Spanish citizenship.

Davis household decides to henceforth speak only Spanish.

Realizado we solo bloggiadoed on Elaiña’s blogio.

Muy Convictioñado.

Keith changes nombre to ChaCheé.

Will be more consistienté with life changes on Treinta Travelerjalos.

Mi amor. Bailamos.

~ChaCheé & Elaiña

A Big Hike & An Everlasting Promise

I first knew that I really loved Erin when she confessed to me that her greatest joy in life comes from reading the Thirty Travelers blog. I, being the absent minded bloke that I am, knew that if I am going to be faithful to this blog for the rest of my life on earth, I would need a companion who would run fast and hard alongside of me towards the prize of Most Consistent Blog Updater. Ever.

So to get started with that goal we thought we would share the story of our engagement.  I took Erin on a pilgrimage to the top of Mount Sinai. After my time at Beach Project, my red skin was like the flames of the burning bush. Hiking up that mountain was a difficult task, as I was carrying two stone tablets inscribed with the top 10 reasons why I want to spend the rest of my life with this girl. When we reached the top and Erin read these confessions of my heart, a clap of thunder (some would say “The blessing of God”) filled the air. Erin cried with a loud voice, “Alpha Omicron Chi Omega Epsilon Pi!” (Which in Greek, of course, means “With all my heart- YES!”) After descending from the mount, to commemorate the occasion, we immediately melted down all of our jewelry into a small gold slice of key lime pie.

The happy couple just after our descent

We are so excited to extend a wedding invitation to you all!! Please RSVP by posting on the blog!

- Matt

Ducks and vodka

Will, you crack me up.

I'm trying really hard to think of something creative to write. To bring a snort to your nose. To bring an ache to your side.

Nada. Oh well.

But I did just return from a trip to Zhongguo (otherwise known as China) with 4 other Malaysian Chinese students to visit one of the first students I met when I came to Malaysia for the summer back in '06. She moved back to her country in 2007. Thirty Travelers meet Zoe:
The trip reminded me much of our trek through Italy; although, I'd say that many key elements were missing. There was no Rick Steves. No Sims to plan everything (Thanks again Sims for all you did!) No white wine. Oh wait, there was some white wine, or maybe vodka? Our tour guide took us to a place where they make a Chinese medicine consisting of snake venom with alcohol to 'cure whatever ales ya.' (I'm not sure exactly what it's for; I still can't really understand the Chinese language.) I'm pretty sure the snakes in the jars were dead...I guess dead snake soaked in vodka also does something for ya.

No, I didn't buy you all snake oil juice for Christmas. I know you're sad now.

Back to the trip. We rode in a train. A much nicer train than the ones we took in Italy. We took a night train to Shanghai. My bunk was on the 3rd tier. We went to the top of the Oriental Pearl in Shanghai, strolled through old villages (600 year old villages), climbed Huangshan (yellow mountain), spent the night in tents and woke up to see the sunrise at the peak. (Will, I did eat quite a few peanuts on that hike and thought of you!) Actually, the Malaysian girls I went with (who served as my translators) decided to take the cable car up the 1,864 m mtn. Me? I chose to climb with a Chinese couple who spoke no English; it was an interesting climb to say the least. But we made it to the top and i was albe to see another great sunrise!

We traveled to 5 cities in 12 days (which also reminded me of Italy): Hangzhou, Huangshan, Zhongxiagong (zoe's town), Suzhou, and Shanghai. My favorite part of the trip, however, was being with Zoe. She's not a believer but has heard truth from my co-workers and I off and on for 3 years now. She recently bought a restaurant that she's spent a lot of time investing in. Business is not good. Her marriage is not great (she's 35 years old...has been married for 2 years). She asked me countless times, "What's my purpose in life? I have no purpose in life!" I shared with her yet again about the purpose that I believe she was created for; she didn't really have any response. Please pray for her to find joy and satisfaction in the One we know paid the price for her and desires to have relationship with her!

Zoe eating in her restuarant

The last day I explored a bit of Shanghai on my own and stumbled upon a big fresh vegetable, fruit and poultry market. Here are a few pictures that I think capture some of the culture and food in China:

bao on the street.
so good. bread filled with noodles or pork or veggies or red bean. red bean was disappointing the first time i tried it: it looked like a big slab of chocolate. but it wasn't. it was red bean.

a few of the many veggies

my favorite: yes, that's a live duck being weighed on a scale getting ready to be bought. and skinned. and eaten. yum.

In other news: I'm training for a half marathon to be domintaed on 11th Oct in KK (the same city where Will, John and I conquered that beast of a mtn). I'll be moving to that city in January for a few months before I make my debut back in the states:)

Zoe and me about to go paddleboating.

Life is good. God is better.

Miss you all! Keep blogging!

Dude, man, it's been too long.

Many of you may assume that I’m still in DC teaching. Well have I got a ZOINK for you (finger touch John)!! I’ve decided to give in to my guilty pleasure and dedicate my life to pop music. I am currently on tour with Beyonce, serving as her sound mixer/ bodyguard. I first auditioned to be her lead guitarist/ back-up vocalist, but since she doesn’t actually use real musical instruments, I’ve had to settle for my current position. She has taught me so much, dude. She is my musical guru.

I really enjoy my job because my voice matters. I told Beyonce of my love for climbing the World’s Highest Peaks. In honor of me, she has named the tour: Above and Beyonce. The first stop is the summit of Mount Kilimanjaro. Lucky for me, Beyonce just signed a 5-year contract advertising for Planter’s Peanuts. i.e. All the peanuts an avid hiker like myself could want.
But those peanuts aren’t the only thing that’s gonna keep me going. Peanuts and people. That’s what I need. This is where you come in, 30 Travs. Dude. Y’all are awesome. I freakin’ care about what’s going on in your lives. So you’re making a choice: to Will or to kill?

Sustained by posts (and peanuts), Will.

www.Above&Beyonce.com/Planterspeanuts

Thanks a Million!

Jamie, Jen, and Kris here.  What a whirlwind these past 2 weeks have been!  We have traveled the country of Ethiopia in its ENTIRETY.  Every nook and cranny has been scouted out by yours truly.  Kris met Jamie and Jen in Addis (after sneaking/ walking real obviously past security approximately 2,976 times to find Jen) and we headed to Finote Selam early the next morning.  The next three days were spent in the Finote, highlights include:  Jamie’s (almost) birthday celebration, an emergency shunting program at 0200 for Jamie, an informational cheeseburger program, and no showering whatsoever. 

On to Addis for the Ethiopian New Year Festivities.  Happy 2002…again…everyone!  Highlights include: dancing to Whitney Houston with Ethiopians, watching hours of Ethiopian music videos, Jen being put in the spotlight by an Amharic-singing Ethiopian entertainer (and Kristen simultaneously being chest-bumped…by the same singer…she was good folks), joining hundreds of Ethiopians at midnight in the cold to watch fireworks- psych! (too expensive this year, but no one thought to tell the entire population of Addis), and New Years day spent with a wonderful Ethiopian family. 

Next we had the great pleasure of meeting the man, the myth, the legend:  Mr. Million (Million is his first name).  We knew he was to quickly become our 4^th partner in crime…literally.  He looked the part, what with his red wind pants and sleek fashion sunglasses.  Mr. Million had entered our lives to escort us on a 6-day tour of southern Ethiopia.  And man, did we tour that junk. 

Day One:  The Dorze tribe (elephant huts, extremely resourceful with the false banana tree)

Day Two: 8-hour car ride to Jinka (numb butts, reading, and sleeping)

Day Three: Mursi tribe (VEEEERY aggressive people, lip cutting to insert disc, goat blood and milk drinking)

Day Four: Hamer tribe (watched women being whipped and naked man run across the backs of bulls approximately 6 times as part of the traditional wedding ceremony…wow.)

Day Five: Abore and Konso tribes (sensory overload, get us out of the car… and out of the south)

Day Six:  Ganja and 9-hour car ride back to Addis (numb butts, reading, sleeping, brief illegal action encouraged and arranged by Million, arrive at destination in Addis: Mr. Martin’s Cozy Place)

Hanging out with a tribal woman, of course

So, overall a good time was had by all…even Papa Mills.  I, Jamie, look forward to welcoming home our little African travelers in a mere 2 months!!  Woohoo! 

One topic of our daily discussion has been the Thirty Travelers Blog.  As the founders, we feel it necessary to encourage the more consistent use of this tool for communication.  Jen was awestruck when she overheard Kristen and Jamie’s discussions of Matt and Erin’s recent engagement.  Kristen was likewise shocked to hear that Pat got new pants from Urban Outfitters 2 weeks ago.   I mean, how are we supposed to know these things unless you post about them? This is a crime and those found guilty of withholding such valuable information must be prepared to face the consequences.  So.  Be forewarned.  And light the fire…in my weary soul.  Fan the flame. Just do it people. On the blog.

Man who dances with bulls.  Bare butt.  Bleh.  Shun. 

There he is - bare butt in the flesh...well, not quite yet in the flesh, but we thought that may be a bit inappropriate for our family-friendly blog

Brook Hills

Oh, look at our ol' boy Platt in Christianity Today.

This is so Americanized.

Yo, Jen and Kris here.

So Will and John came to visit us, too! And we are happy to say that they have adapted.

Exhibit #1: They assume the appropriate position in the presence of extremely powerful forces of nature. 

Exhibit #2: They respond appropriately when tickled in the jugular by various Rwandans, as demonstrated below.

But seriously, our mini family reunion was ridiculously awesome and served as a great reminder of how wonderful our friends are.  Jen and I are coming away from the past few weeks so refreshed and encouraged and just feeling really blessed to have such great people in our lives.  Neither of us have laughed so much or so hard (see above) in a long time... well, you know, since New Year's.

Watching the guys meet my Ethiopian family and friends was my favorite part of having them in the land that boasts of 13 months of sunshine.  They literally met all of Finote Selam and were champs about it. John and Will were able to have great conversations with two of my closest friends, Mame and Teshager. I'm excited to go back and see what comes of that! Also, the family I lived with loved them and commented on their "good behavior." I'm pretty sure that just means they were good at eating injera and drinking coffee, but this is quite the compliment.

All three of us were quite ready to head for Uganda when the time came, however! Jen put us right to work, taking us east towards the Kenyan border to pass out mosquito nets and check out a community center her organization is funding. It was such a neat opportunity to see the great projects Jen is working on and to see how appreciative the rural communities are to receive supplies that will protect the health of their families. We also took a short hike to a great waterfall (again, see above photo).  On our last night in Uganda we went to a birthday party for Lino, a Sudanese teenager that is being adopted by the people Jen is working with. Jen, John, and Will were schooled in volleyball, we got to meet Jen's people, and there was birthday cake... Uganda is awesome.

But Rwanda is even better! When you flush the toilets, water swirls in the opposite direction. Clearly good things are happening there... we spent a few days visiting with the sister church of Will's church in DC and their awesome pastor, Deo, who coined the phrase that is the subject of this post when we introduced him to the concept of group hugs.  We had good conversation with him, met others in the church and just had a really great time there.  Then we went down to Kigali, toured some of the genocide memorials there and soaked up our last bit of time with the guys before they headed out on Tuesday night.  

So here we are, back in Kampala, trying to regroup for the months ahead. We find ourselves excited about what the next four months have in store, feeling supported and encouraged, and yet ready to come home at the same time. Having that taste of community leaves us ready to be with you all! Jen and I will both be heading home the last week of November and will be showing up on doorsteps looking for somewhere to live, so get ready!

John and Will came to visit!!

I felt like I was back at the 626.

I think John was winning at this point. Until I pounced on them both and took them out with the cushions...

They had a little too much fun with a plastic bag. Yes, they're the same plastic bags we have in the States (At least I think. I'm finding that the longer I'm here the more I forget about small details like that in America)

And they caught me doing what I do best: illegally driving while smsing...whoops

So good to see these guys again! We had a great time on the mountain, looking for monkeys, fireflys, and watching beautiful double rainbows expand before our eyes!

You never know what's waiting for you when you come to Malaysia!

In other news: I will probably, big probably, be staying in this wonderfully hot-all-year-round country (unless you're on the top of their tallest mountain) until March 2010. I'll keep you posted;)

Greetings from San Fran!

Hi everybody! Will and John here. If you are interested in following along on our travels, we've started another blog, willandjohn.blogspot.com . Cute right?! I mean it is pride week...

Miss you all, cya soon!

From Parkhurst: "How It Ends"

Just wanted to let you all know that I'm going to the How It Ends conference in Washington DC next week to learn about ending the war in Uganda (it's sponsored by Invisible Children, Resolve Uganda, and the Enough Project). If anyone is interested, they are actually broadcasting it online at www.howitends.tv . They are going to have some pretty awesome speakers on Monday morning, we are meeting with congressmen Tuesday, and then there is a concert Tuesday afternoon; check it out if you can. Also, if you are feeling particularly politically active, call your congressmen and ask them to consponsor the LRA Disarmament and Northern Uganda Recovery Act (Senate Resolution 1067 and House Resolution 2478). You can read the bill online, but the main focus is to require the Obama administration to come up with a plan to work with other nations to end the war and rebuild the communities. Good stuff. Let's make sure it passes.

If any of you are ever in Chattanooga, give me a call. 423-605-5165. I feel like a jerk for not keeping in touch with most of you, but I do care about you and hope you're doing well.

John

so im an idiot

i cant get the contact list open, and i lost all my contacts when i accidently washed my phone in the laundry could ya'll please text me you number or facebook message it to me or get it to me however i love ya'll thanks

FYI

At the moment I am in Baltimore, Md for a conference and have a presentation tomorrow. Next Thursday I will be in Birmingham for a few days for vacation time.

happy late mother's day

Pre Script: this doc is about a week behind because the internet was literally out in the whole town of Port St. Johns and my computer just start working again after a week of being dead. however during this last week we spent six days hiking the coast of the Transkei and staying in Xhosa villages, many good stories from that time. these will have to wait. pictures are finally up on the picassa web album: http://picasaweb.google.com/billy211b@gmail.com and the group email we sent to family and school friends can be found here: http://docs.google.com/View?id=dd6mctth_4grm72vgb

Hey friends, right now I am sitting in a little dutch breakfast place on the coast at a place called Jeffrey’s Bay (known as the best surfing spot in the world). I love the breakfasts here, they give you hot milk with your coffee, and a cookie/biscuit, and their French toast comes with bacon and cheese smothered all over it.

So the plan today is to surf, we hung out on the beach yesterday read for hours and figured out which spot we were going to surf. Lucky for us the ocean swell is super low, so there is a perfect little six foot wave for us to surf. However, this place is a haven for great whites, so cross your fingers that I come back with all four limbs.

So, I’ll try to throw out some good personal notes of the trip so far… Thanks to Patrick’s insistence we made it happen to go into London for our twelve hour layover. Keith, I saw your man Van Gogh, I lingered at the painting Sunflowers for a long time and thought of you and Bop. Patrick, Hunter, in the spirit/precursor of Free the Hops passing, we went to a brilliant pub by Hyde Park. They had half a dozen cask ales and a handful of Belgian abbeys. I have been introducing Catherine to the world of actually enjoying beer, that it could actually be something you want to put in your mouth.

Ok, so Cape Town seriously was one of the most beautiful cities I will ever see. The most diverse place in landscape and people groups I will ever see. As far as the health care system there goes, I am jealous. I guess it takes a post apartheid state to create a system that actually cares about the health of its people. As physical therapy goes, they are not bound by the insurance reimbursements, even to the point where therapists can spend half their time educating patients on preventative measures. For example, in the states, over half of all the health problems could be eliminated by preventative measures, the numbers for diabetes and heart disease alone are ridiculous, but we treat the disease once it has occurred. Here there is a huge emphasis placed on educating and keeping these problems from happening through lifestyle changes. Anyways, I am tempted by the freedom that therapists have here and how intensely the government seeks to provide care to everyone even requiring students to spend at least a year in a rural setting after graduation. The PT student Sarah that we hung out with had to be one of the nicest people in the world. True story. She said there is such a need for medical professionals right now and especially teachers in the educational system (lets go).

Well its been a great trip so far, Catherine and I are getting along great, we have only punched each other in the throat three times (twice from her, once from me). The thing about a punch to the throat is that it really degrades your enemy and renders them useless for at least ten minutes.

But really, we’ve had a great time, a lot of good conversation about life, Christianity, PT, table manners etc.

I’ll let you flip through the pictures I’m about to put up to follow the different places we’ve been so far.

Yesterday’s theme (each day seems to develop a theme/spirit) was “be the individual”. So Matt, I spent the morning rolling through The Sickness Unto Death and started the Moviegoer. I see a major point of these so far is to see the state of despair you are in and actually let yourself think about the implications of being aware of yourself. Completely unrelated, Cat and I talked about how important it is to follow/develop your own desires, personality, beliefs, without just mindlessly attaching to or following the group. This was in context of different personalities in college. So then, to seal the deal, we had a very cool conversation with a hippie lady at the place we were staying. She had been traveling for fourteen years after selling off all her big cars and house and getting discontented with how selfish her life had become. The conversation started when I complemented her on how beautiful her dreadlocks were… funny thing, they actually were (don’t worry mom, I am in no way tempted). In the kitchen we talked about how important it is to be aware and realize there is something beyond the routine we get caught up into. For her, yoga was a major part of this development in being mindful and caring for herself and others. We definitely did not agree on everything, but it was interesting how much we did have in common. I brought some Kierkegaardian ideas to the table as I saw such thick parallels. Her name was Marie Claire.

Ok, this is long enough, much love to everyone!

There is another email we sent out yesterday to friends and family that I will post as a google doc if you want some more juice. Cheers,

ryan

Did you know...

1a) that Kristen now goes by Kristy?  Please, no matter what she tells you, she would appreciate it if you use this name from now on.

1b) that I went to hang out with her in Ethiopia last week? I ate sheep, narrowly escaped death by hippopotamus attack, and had an incredible time with her!

1c) that I also enjoy Picasa albums and have uploaded some photos of the trip for you to see here?

2a) that, based on recent evidence, in addition to following me to Africa and joining the Picasa family, Ryan Warden actually aspires to be like me in everything he does?

2b) that, despite what this photo may suggest, I did not actually attempt to knock Kristy out and feed her to the hungry hippos?

3) that I've decided to extend my time in Uganda by a couple months, until mid-November?  I've prayed and thought about it a lot, and I feel like this is what the Lord wants me to do.

4) that I am still so ridiculously thankful for all of you and miss you more than I can say?  Seriously, I recently set my screen saver to scroll through about 400 photos of the family, and I fear I may never leave my computer again because it makes me so happy to look at your faces!  I really believe that what we have is special - an evidence of Grace, really - and I want you to know that I am beyond grateful for it, that I think of you often and it gives me joy, that I love hearing from you, and that I love you.

love. jen

Stomach Parasites make Awesome Pets

So I know I dont post that much but here is what has been going on lately, I just got back from taking a mission trip to India for two weeks with the other interns and our intern director. We were in Calcutta working with a family we knew who moved there from memphis. They help women escape the sex industry by gving them an alternative means of income, we also worked in one of the Mother theresa homes for the destitute. After the original trip m and two other friends took an extended trip to visit another family we knew. Sadly we had to leave early, because one of the guys I was traveling with had his passport stolen. But no fears we al made it back, upon returning I was promptly attacked by the stomach parasite i had hidden in my body which sucked I am getting better now and will hopefully be back to normal tomorrow. anyways news on the homefront Rachel and I are still going strong, i think I might have found a house t rent next year which is great. Also, still not sure what my job will be but i have an interview on Monday with an incredible Charter School in the neighborhood about a possibe maintenance position, which would be an awesome job. So ya that pretty much sums up my recent life. Hope all of you are doing well, i love and cherish all of you.

turns out

google does it again. i have quickly decided to use picasa.google for posting pictures, it is delightful. it has a link through my i-google, a good format, large sizes to download, and yes... face recognition. i threw a couple pics from the amazing wilco concert from last week while i was at it.
check it every now and then if you want to keep up, as i fly out to cape town this thursday. this thursday, so crazy how all the momentum can shift so fast. i spent the last week studying almost every waking hour and now i prepare for travelling an amazing unknown continent for seven weeks. i'm going to miss ya'll, birmingham family. africa friends, i'll be a little closer, maybe we'll share some kindred emotions

http://picasaweb.google.com/billy211b@gmail.com

pictures...

I am testing out this picasa picture posting thing for this summer. These couple of pics are from the first time me and john went to the locust fork to kayak. It was for real. I am now hooked on the yak

Crazy Awesome Buy

Amazon.com sometimes is absolutely amazing. This week, the re-mastered version of one of my all-time favorite albums (and Rolling Stone's 2nd best album ever) is on sale for digital download for $1.99. Even if you don't like the Beach Boys or think you don't like the Beach Boys, I strongly encourage this buy. If you don't like it, I'll refund your money... and call you a damnable liar...

Pet Sounds

update on many things

thanks to everyone who has been praying for my family over these last few weeks.. many apologies that i have not updated very well. I plan to do that now. My sister went to trial last week, and they now have partial custody restored. This is good because they will continue to fight for full custody, and they still stand some sort of chance. Also they got permission to take ashton this summer to see my parents in Egypt, for about a week. They had already bought the tickets when all this came up, so luckily they were able to work it out to get that. Please continue to pray for them as the real trial will start again in June or July (which likely means the first delay of trial will be in june or july) My sister was also excited to find out that she is pregnant again. Their daughter Hailey is only 7 months old, so this was quite a suprise, but very exciting. My sister-in-law unfortunately lost the pregnancy she had, but they have decided to go on a consolation trip to Europe. So they still have something exciting to look forward to. Wow what a plethora of family information i just filled everyone in on. I love and miss you all, and i will go to sleep now. goodbye

oh my...

awesome. (click here)

can we all go next year?

The Rescue

From John Parkhurst

Friends,

I would like to make you aware of an event happening this Saturday, April 25, to raise awareness and encourage the rescue of the abducted child soldiers in Central East Africa, particularly in Uganda, the Congo, and Sudan. The event is called “The Rescue” and is being held in 100 cities in 10 countries. There are already 65,000 signed up worldwide, nearly 200 in Birmingham, and over 400 in Chattanooga. For more information about the current situation as well as the event, please visit therescue.invisiblechildren.com; there is a 35 minute documentary online that is well worth watching, even if you are familiar with what is happening; also see the entry “Arrow Boys” on Jen’s blog [http://jenwilmore.blogspot.com]. The basic concept behind the event is “abducting yourself for the abducted child soldiers”. Participants will travel by foot to a pre-determined location in their city that will serve as their “LRA Camp”. There, they will remain ‘abducted’ until a person of great influence or cultural significance arrives and ‘RESCUES’ them by making a public statement on behalf of the child soldiers. Basically, we don’t go home until these designated leaders arrive. If you want to participate in the event, make sure to sign up on the website. Even if you can’t attend, consider contacting these leaders, as well as the media, and encourage them to come; there is a document on each city’s page that tells what to do.

If you are cynical about whether on not this will make a difference, watch this short 3 ½ minute video: http://behindthescenes.invisiblechildren.com/post/96932852/it-will-work-it-must

If are still cynical after watching that, watch this 5 minute video: http://behindthescenes.invisiblechildren.com/post/98392647/the-rescue-riders-are-real-together-were-free?utm_source=email&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=willitworkemail

My favorite line is “don’t sleep through a revolution”. Seriously, don’t.

(even if you already know this will make a difference, watch the videos anyway…they’re good)

And if doing it for the child soldiers isn’t motivation enough, do it for Jen. It’ll make her life a little bit safer.

I trust all of you are doing well and I hope to see you soon.

John

Arthur Alligood CD

Hey, I hate to promote shamelessly, but I am about to promote shamelessly. One of my favorite artists has come out with a CD and I want to let you guys know in case you want to give him a chance.

Well, he's really cool. One time I bought his CD and he wrote me an email thanking me and when he sent the CD put a handwritten note with it. His lyrics rock. So deep and thoughtful. They keep on getting better the more you listen to them. He talks alot about the journey of discovering how little we know of Christ and what it looks like to walk through suffering, ect.

Ask me one day and I'll play a song for you on guittar.

Anyway, this is his third CD and they're awesome but I don't thing people are buying many and he's going to seminary so this may be his last. For the past year he has been letting people download five of the songs for free and only now has he made an actual CD to buy. The five songs are great.

If you have an extra $8 and want to give it a try go here.

That's all. I think you all are great. Super great. TTFN.

(James the giraffe lives in my apartment. He's our new pet.)

Matters of Prayer

So over the last few months i've felt very boring, nothing has changed in my job. still at atarbucks, still at fox, still in birmingham. And i was really lamenting the fact that there was nothing particularly interesting going on in my life. Well Friday was one of the most interesting days i've had in a long time, and i'm coming before you guys now, because one matter is particular could really use your prayer. I received a call from my sister Friday morning, to inform me that her son had been taken away from her by DHR (child protective services... i don;t really know what it stands for that's just what they do)
To explain more clearly, my sister married Eric over 2 years ago. Eric had previously had a relationship with another girl, with which he had a child. Both of them were pretty messes up at the time (on drugs, things of that sort) and the mother actually still is kinda messed up... but that is a whole different story. Anyways Eric had partial custody of Ashton (his son) until he was 3. Then the mother's parents filed something through court to get full custody. Eric decided to fight rather than settle, and get to see his son only every other weekend. Basically because the grandparents have lots of money, the trial took 3 years to complete, (during which time Eric had no custody rights at all, so he basically missed 3 years of his son's life) and finally ended with Eric, and my sister (whom he had married now) getting full custody, and the mother getting partial custody.
A lot of allegations were raised by the grandparents during the trial, and one of them was that Ashton's cousin Austin (who was 6 at the time) had sexually abused Ashton. So while my sister and eric had full custody they had to monitor Ashton at all times he might be with Austin.
DHR is now claiming that they didn't monitor Ashton enough, and thus took him away giving custody right back to the mother, and they're beginning a new trial.
On Monday they're goign to have a pretrial to determine what custody will be like until the trial starts again... I would really appreciate your prayers for this matter. The mother and grandparents are not Christians, don't go to church, and don't encourage Ashton spiritually either. If they don;t get any custody again, Eric and Rachael will very likely settle, because Eric has said he can't spend another year (at least) without seeing his son.
It's an awful situation, and if you could be praying for the judges decision on Monday, and that God's will would be revealed through this trial, and that this second trial would not be as long or cost as much.
My second matter of prayer is much happier. My brother Matthew, and his wife Becca are going to have their first child. I was informed by my brother on Friday night. They're very excited, as am i. Now i will be an uncle twice over, and thrice if you count Ashton.
I love you all, and look forward to our next meeting. Thank you for your prayers, and to everyone who writes on this blog, thanks for updating me on your life. I really love hearing about what is going on in each of your lives.
This post has been rather long for me.... THE END

Update of the Life variety:

Well . . . I had THE meeting with my boss today, to tell him I was leaving, and it went GREAT. Thanks so much to all of you who were praying for me. I was actually a little shocked at how well it went. He was totally happy and supportive, even optimistic. Not a negative word or vibe in the bunch. Excellent, it feels great to be able to talk openly about it.

Speaking of talking openly, those of you who are not in the immediate Birmingham-o-sphere may be a little lost. I've had to keep it hush hush, because, believe it or not phantom blog readers/coworkers have been known to wonder on over here from time to time, but in May I'll be leaving my current job to teach Español at Cornerstone school in Woodlawn. I'm super excited, and a little terrified/totally overwhelmed. It will be wonderful.

SO, I just wanted to let you guys know. 

Because you are awesome.

Peace!

Quotes

I like quotes. Here are some!

"The wisdom of the years is confusing. Only the wisdom of eternity is edifying." Soren Kierkegaard.

"Every time a man knocks on the door of a brothel he is looking for God." G. K. Chesterson

"Men are idol factories." John Calvin

"Are all who call themselves Christian, Christian?" Soren Kierkegaard

"The Fall is an offense to human reason, but once accepted, it makes perfect sense of the human condition."Blaise Pascal

"Study with your Bible in one hand and your newspaper in the other." Karl Barth

"Love God, and do what you want." St. Augustine

"He whom God loveth, He beateth the hell out of." Jamie Buckingham

One day St. Francis was hoeing his garden. Someone asked, "Francis, if you knew Christ was coming tomorrow what would you do?" He said, "I would finish hoeing my garden."

After an amazing violin performance a man said to the violinist, "That gave me goose bumps. It must give you a lot of joy to play like that." She said innocently, "Yes, sometimes I get goose bumps myself."

"Where is the joy?" Jack Miller

"Our problem is not that we desire too much but too little." C. S. Lewis

"Either these are not the gospels or we are not Christians." (I think) Henry VIII's biographer was given the gospels, and said this upon returning them to their owner.

"I believe the sole cause of man's unhappiness is that he does not know how to stay quietly in his room." Blaise Pascal

"All men seek happiness. There are no exceptions.... This is the motive of every act of every man, including those who go and hang themselves." Blaise Pascal

"Man's search for meaning is the chief motivation of his life." Victor Frankl

"A responsible round does not go too short or too far." An artillery axiom

"Smooth seas do not make skillful sailors." African proverb

"In 40 years I have not spent 15 minutes without thinking of Jesus." Charles Spurgeon

"Sticking to one woman is a small price to pay for so much as having seen one woman." G. K. Chesterson

"If you have integrity, nothing else matters. If you don't have integrity, nothing else matters." Former Senator Alan Simpson

"Every now and then go away -- even briefly, for when you come back to your work your judgment will be surer; since to remain constantly at work will cause you to lose power." Leonardo da Vinci

"Facts do not cease to exist because they are ignored." Aldous Huxley

"It takes a lot of truth to float an error." Charles MacKenzie

"I heard in American there was a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I found the gold but I lost the rainbow." wealthy American immigrant

"On the plains of hesitation bleach the bones of countless millions who, at the dawn of victory, sat down to wait…and waiting, died." George W. Cecil, 1923

"As a Jew, I have had nothing but the greatest and most profound respect for Jesus Christ of Nazareth. He was, after all, Jewish -- born Jewish, died Jewish. I think Jesus Christ was the greatest single individual of both millenniums and He had more profound effect on mankind than any individual ever born. If there's one person in history I would like to interview, it would be Jesus." Larry King

T. S. Elliot, "Only those who risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go."

J.C. Ryle, "He must dig down very low if he would build high."

"One of the hardest things in the world is to stop being the prodigal son without turning into the elder brother." John Ortberg

"Have you ever noticed how many men in the Bible failed in the second half of life? Our enemy is so cunning that he will wait forty or even fifty years to set a trap." Joe Aldrich

"Christianity has not so much been tried and found wanting, as it has been found difficult and left untried." G. K. Chesterton

"We ought to be so on fire for Jesus that if a mosquito bit us on the hand, it would fly away singing, 'There's power in the blood!'" Alvin Reid

"If we knew we were to die at twelve o'clock tomorrow night, would we have to step up our evangelistic program, or could we in all good conscience carry on just as we are?" Ray Comfort

"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Martin Luther King, Jr.

"I have treated many hundreds of patients. Among those over 35, there has not been one whose problem in the last resort was not that of finding a religious outlook on life." Carl Jung

"Your system is perfectly designed to produce the result you are getting." Fredrick Taylor, the father of Scientific Management

"Jesus brought forth men's greatest efforts by the promise of obstacles not rewards." Bruce Barton

"I can find ten more who will die for the Bible for every one who will actually read it." Charles Spurgeon

"It will be gone before you know it. The fingerprints on the wall appear higher and higher. Then, suddenly, they disappear." Dorothy Euslin

"As I grow older I pay less attention to what men say. I just watch what they do." Andrew Carnegie

"It is rightly called the deceitfulness of sin because it deceives under the appearance of good. This phrase 'deceitfulness of sin' ought to be understood in a much wider sense, so that the term includes even one's own righteousness and wisdom. For more than anything else one's own righteousness and wisdom deceive one and work against faith in Christ, since we love the flesh and the sensations of the flesh and also riches and possessions, but we love nothing more ardently than our own feelings, judgment, purpose, and will, especially when they seem to be good." Martin Luther, commenting on Hebrews 3:13

"Each generation of the church in each setting has the responsibility of communicating the gospel in understandable terms, considering the language and thought forms of that setting." Francis Schaeffer

"One of the greatest reasons people cannot mobilize themselves is that they try to accomplish great things. Most worthwhile achievements are the result of many little things done in a single direction." Nido Quebin

"You cannot discover new lands unless you leave shore for a very long time." Andre Gide

"Many Christians estimate difficulties in light of their own resources, and thus attempt little and often fail in the little they attempt. All God's giants have been weak men who did great things for God because they reckoned on his power and presence being with them." Hudson Taylor

"God's work done God's way will not lack God's supply."

"God prepares great men for great tasks by great trials." J. K. Gressett

"Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God." William Carey, cobbler, 1792, founder of mission movement