Well first of all, a Happy Thanksgiving to you all. Could we have asked for a more perfect day? Clear and cool with a slight wind, it was perfect. I spent the morning out in my backyard enjoying a nice fire and the woods that border my backyard. It sure was nice to have some time for myself. I hope you all had an equally enjoyable day.
As for the trip we had a great advance in our airfare situation today. My dad finally got my grandpa's AA rewards card from my grandma. Good news, my grandfather left us over 100,000 miles. However, most of them expire in April '09. Worse case scenario we have to split the price of one ticket three ways, I know its awful isn't it. Best case scenario is that we pay absolutely nothing for our airfare. Thanks Poppa.
I have to say that things couldn't be going any better than they are right now but as Snyder's law states, whenever you find yourself on the way up prepare yourself for the way down. I've spent alot of time hiking and I can tell you that most of the time this is the case. Eventually you always have to go back down. I hoping that we can ride this ridge for as long as possible. I thank God for OUR great fortune. We have nothing more to ask for besides our good health and saftey.
It's funny because it was just a few weeks ago I posted my "tired..." entry. I guess its a perfect example of the crazy lives that we all live. The valleys always feel so low and the mountains always feel so high, if I could just stay at the treeline I would be happy forever.
Well that's all for tonight, Catch ya on the flip side.
Thursday, November 27, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
More Good News!!!

Wells things have just been getting better by the day. I'll start with Austin. Tomorrow will be Austin's first day of work. Which is great news for the group in general considering we can't go to Scotland without it. Hopefully this new job will work out for him and make it possible for him to come with us.
As for John, he is back at work with Ski Market and working hard on his Eagle Scout project. Hopefully everything will work out for him. He doesn't have that much time before he turns 18, the cut off for the badge. I know he will finish in time and be a great Eagle Scout.
Things haven't changed much for me, I'm busy with work and school. Just keeping my head down and pushing through. I can't wait to graduate and go to Scotland but thank God for things like Lacrosse and friends to keep me going. Hope all your lives are going well too. Sorry I don't have more time to post.
Catch ya on the flip side.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Update...

I know its been a while since I posted last but I've been very busy. I'll start off with the good news. I started working FULL TIME! I work 3 days a week right after school. If things stay as they are right now I should have more than enough money to pay for the trip and the best part is that I can afford to take the Lacrosse Season off. I pray that everything continues to work out. With that my grades are also in an equally good situation and I hope to keep them that way for the rest of the year. It looks like things are finally falling into place.
As for today, I spent the just about the whole day finishing up my last major phase of planning. I have our Trip Summary/Itinerary all done. My mileage is finally figured out, just about every day is 1o miles. My budget is done and I know this sounds bad but the way the economy is going is good news for us. Lastly, I have my packing list done and I'm weighing in at 31 pounds. That's better than my trip to the whites!
As my friends at the North Face say, Assume nothing, plan for everything then plan some more. I'm happy for it to be done for the most part. Just a few more things to iron out. I hope that all of your lives are going equally as well.
Catch ya on the flip side.
Sunday, November 2, 2008
Afraid of the Dark
If you've been reading this blog then you will know that I often bring this subject up. I don't do it purposely, I promise, but it always seems to come up again. I was reading more of Walden today and stumbled upon this quote:
Sorry about the cut but you can still make it out. I love how when I read Walden I often make connections with it and Thoreau's thinking. I've left you all with my quote multiple times: "I'm not afraid of the dark, I just prefer the light." I think that anyone who has spent time out in the wild could easily connect with Thoreau and I. When your out there and the only light is coming from the moon you realize what darkness truly is. I will not lie to you, when that darkness rolls in you react in one of two ways. Either you feel completely relaxed or you feel on edge and fearfull. Thoreau goes on to talk about that some of his best moments at Walden were in the dark late at night. After reading that, I want you to go outside tonight and observe how light is. Even at night we do whatever we can to keep it light. I promise you that more then half of you will not be able to find a truly dark spot tonight.
My other point from this quote would be Thoreau's remark about candles and Christianity. For my entire life I've been a Catholic. I became really involved over the past few years and even thought about becoming a priest. Over the past few months things have changed, I started thinking about the power that religion has over us. Don't get me wrong, I believe in God and the Catholic Church but I do think that religion is especially attractive to the weak, to the scared, to the hopeless. Religion makes you feel safe, it makes you feel like everything is going to be ok. There is nothing wrong with that feeling but after dealing with many people I can tell you that most people in church don't believe because they want to or because they truly believe. They go to church and pray everyday because either they fear what will happen if they don't or they need the comfort that you get from it. They do not truly believe in God or his awesome power, they believe that "As long as I pray everyday and I go to church every sunday I will be saved". It's sad but true. Many of the so called "Jesus Freaks" are actually simply scared of life and need something to comfort them.
Religion is a touchy subject but the most important thing is to stick with what you believe. Don't let others change your mind. In the end your going to have to answer for yourself. You can't blame others for your decisions, you can only blame yourself.
As for the candle remark, I don't know what I would do without my tea-lites. Catch ya on the flip side.
Sorry about the cut but you can still make it out. I love how when I read Walden I often make connections with it and Thoreau's thinking. I've left you all with my quote multiple times: "I'm not afraid of the dark, I just prefer the light." I think that anyone who has spent time out in the wild could easily connect with Thoreau and I. When your out there and the only light is coming from the moon you realize what darkness truly is. I will not lie to you, when that darkness rolls in you react in one of two ways. Either you feel completely relaxed or you feel on edge and fearfull. Thoreau goes on to talk about that some of his best moments at Walden were in the dark late at night. After reading that, I want you to go outside tonight and observe how light is. Even at night we do whatever we can to keep it light. I promise you that more then half of you will not be able to find a truly dark spot tonight.
My other point from this quote would be Thoreau's remark about candles and Christianity. For my entire life I've been a Catholic. I became really involved over the past few years and even thought about becoming a priest. Over the past few months things have changed, I started thinking about the power that religion has over us. Don't get me wrong, I believe in God and the Catholic Church but I do think that religion is especially attractive to the weak, to the scared, to the hopeless. Religion makes you feel safe, it makes you feel like everything is going to be ok. There is nothing wrong with that feeling but after dealing with many people I can tell you that most people in church don't believe because they want to or because they truly believe. They go to church and pray everyday because either they fear what will happen if they don't or they need the comfort that you get from it. They do not truly believe in God or his awesome power, they believe that "As long as I pray everyday and I go to church every sunday I will be saved". It's sad but true. Many of the so called "Jesus Freaks" are actually simply scared of life and need something to comfort them.
Religion is a touchy subject but the most important thing is to stick with what you believe. Don't let others change your mind. In the end your going to have to answer for yourself. You can't blame others for your decisions, you can only blame yourself.
As for the candle remark, I don't know what I would do without my tea-lites. Catch ya on the flip side.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)