Sometimes when you least expect it, things from the past come screaming back to the forefront, demanding that you face things that you'd put behind you a long time ago... Not exactly what you would've chosen perhaps, but surprisingly such circumstances have a way of bringing peace and healing that you didn't even know you needed.

On that note, it's good to have people that you can talk to about anything, and I do mean anything, and who can equally come to you with whatever they're struggling with. Hold on to those people, even if it's hard sometimes, cause these are the people that give you strength when you're at the end of your rope.

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Starting a freelance/potential full time position on Monday. Should be interesting. Next time you see a shirt for Pizza Hut, I probably designed it... along with my intern that I'm supposed to have. Me, have an intern? Pretty sure I'm still in the intern status myself. Guess that just changed!

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Our 48 hours of service weekend is coming up quick. Very excited about that and will detail it later.

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Three of our guys taught class last night on facing our giants (showing clips from the movie) in life and it was really good. Two thumbs up.

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I think I'll go to an art festival Friday night. Sounds like fun, it's free, and you can never go wrong walking around and looking at art.

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If you need to update your passport, do it yesterday! Expedited fees are ridiculous. Among other ridiculous things are online skills testing. Had to take tests on 3 different programs today for an interview. 'Congrats, you scored 67%, placing you in the top percentile....' That's the top? Scary... Perhaps I could've scored better if the girl next to me had refrained from breaking out in random song throughout the test. Sigh...

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I'm going to work out and be productive in at least one area of life. That's all.

Don't refuse to go on an occasional wild goose chase; that is what wild geese are for.

Snow + "That's Not My Puppy" + a stomach virus + family + farkel + chocolate eclair + My First Signs + a midget + 600 boxes of cookies + grape gatorade = one big happy Easter weekend....

The more I think, the more I feel that there is nothing more truly artistic than to love people. ~van Gogh

I ran into a pigeon the other day in the middle of my daily run. And by 'ran into' I mean it wouldn't get outta the way and flew up in front of me, and I wasn't willing to tumble in the lake to avoid hitting it. So I ran smack into it and it was the one tumbling to the ground, though somehow it hit the grass instead of the lake. I think I knocked it out for a bit. All in all, ridiculous. Sorta reminds me of the time we hit this vulture in the car on the way to Christmas at Pops & Rows. Not good on the car, you would think, but even worse on the vulture.... So the moral of the story is, birds do not belong in any type of roadway. And that's all the randomness for today.

My greatest fear in moving in somewhere by myself was not what you might think. If was not fear of being alone, though that was a biggie. It was not the fear of not having someone else to blame the dirty dishes on, or even fear of the overwhelmingness (new word!) of living in a place like Dallas all by myself. The greatest fear was that having a place by myself would foster immense selfishness. Granted we are all selfish by nature no matter how hard we try, but in living with roommates (whether it's someone you're married to, an older woman with an annoying dog, or a college buddy), there is an essence of not having the opportunity to have your way all the time.

In his book Blue Like Jazz (great book, go read it), Donald Miller writes, "When you live on your own...you begin to think the world belongs to you. You begin to think all space is your space and all time is your time." It's true. There is much to be said for living in community with others.

So it has occurred to me this week, perhaps more than before, that I've grown way too selfish lately. Much of this comes with the unemployment as of late and having each day to read, run, and come and go as I please. I've gotten so caught up in this job search and all that surrounds it, that I forget how other people are facing huge battles much greater than mine. We all encounter big struggles in life, no one is exempt from Satan's attacks. And I think sometimes he attacks those that we thought were the strongest all along.

And so, my attempt to remove the all-invasive self has begun. And if you're facing big struggles, I hope I have not been so absorbed in me that I have failed to be there for you. And I hope we can all remember that no matter what comes our way, there is always someone facing far worse who needs someone to lean on.

"If we are not willing to wake up in the morning and die to ourselves, perhaps we should ask ourselves whether or not we are really following Jesus." -good ole Donald