Concentration Fail

So I'm definitely coming down with something, and it better be just a cold. My voice seems to fade in and out, breathing through my nose just isn't an option for the moment, and I have a sore throat. I really don't want to be sick.

I'm heading home for the weekend tomorrow after class. Apparently AT&T have awful communication skills, so my mom and I have to go work out another issue with my phone. My phone number will be reverting back in the near future. Lovely.

I took my first Economics quiz today, and that definitely could have gone better... though it was online so of course it was open book, it was a little hard to concentrate with my roommate and her friend bouncing around the room getting ready to go out. At least now though I have an idea of how the quizzes will go and can be better prepared next time. I now also know to take them earlier in the day.

For the most part though I am caught up on my homework. I have to finish reading House of Sand and Fog tonight for class tomorrow. They way that he had it assigned we were set to read the book in a week. Essentially we were assigned to read about one hundred pages between class periods which occur every other day. I like to think that I will have it read by midnight so that I can actually get some sleep.

It was two thirty this morning when I got in from Fellowship. But I had fun. It was definitely better than the alternative of sitting here and being told that I need to "get out there and meet people". Yeah. I'll get right on that. No, but I really do like going to Fellowship. I feel really comfortable there.

Earlier I went this program going on in my "neighborhood" called the "World News Forum". That was actually really interesting and it's held monthly so I think I'm going to try and keep going to that. Essentially a bunch of us met together and discussed things that are going on in the news at a global level. The program is really well organized and its interactive without being overly interactive. It was actually kind of cool.

Mr. Police Man

I traveled to the Detroit Metro Airport today. That was exciting.

My dad’s friend went to New York to visit with his daughter and new grand-daughter, and he came back today so dad and I went to pick him up from the airport. It was a beautiful day to get in the car and drive with the windows open.

But anyway, the airport… So we got there around one-forty or so, which turned out to be a good thing, because it took a while to find the correct gate to meet him at. We did end up finding the gate by two, and since his flight wasn’t due in until about two-thirty it meant that we had a bit of a wait ahead of us. This of course was fine, no problem, or at least that’s the impression we had of the situation.

We held that impression until the police arrived.

The first police officer was a funny little man. He drove around in his little car, attempting to be intimidating. He was definitely one of those people that didn’t seem to carry much weight, while he certainly tried to be the voice of authority he wasn’t very authoritative.

First you need to understand something about the layout in front of the Delta Northwest gate. There is of course the building, and then in front of the building is a sidewalk followed by five lanes of traffic. The one closest to the curb is apparently the only one in which it is considered kosher to park and wait in. The others are driving lanes.

We were sitting in the second lane from the sidewalk waiting, and this was an apparent no-no. Mr. Wise Guy apparently thought he was super funny when he pulled up and asked, “What are you waiting for, a ticket?” Though I kept my mouth in check, my knee jerk response was, “Obviously. That’s exactly what we came here for.”

He proceeded to explain that we were parked in the road, and apparently people were complaining. I however, don’t believe the second part of this is true. I mean, really there were three other lanes there. Any moron could have figured out how to use one of them. But okay, whatever, we moved to the proper lane. He then proceeded to make everyone in the proper lane move up and all the gaps were filled. Can anyone say control freak on a power trip?

Not long after we, and those who were parked like we were, moved a whole new group of people took our places in the second lane. This is when the police van carrying three more police officers arrived. They joined the lone cop on his mission to deal with the “situation”. They appeared to be even less effective than he had been. While he backed off, they approached several people before they too backed off choosing instead to loiter by their van which they had parked in the third lane, creating a problem that had not previously existed.

However, the fun had only just begun. Not long after the arrival of the van police, another one showed up. This guy was on a motorcycle. Not once did he get off that motorcycle. In fact, he didn’t even really seem to say anything to anyone, he just road along the second lane in his motorcycle watching everyone. For a little while he two parked in the third lane and sat on his bike as traffic drove around him.

Eventually though, they all took off seeming to give up on what had been deemed an unfixable problem. A short while later an officer returned, this one on foot, and he walked the second lane, he never stopped to say anything to anyone.

It was insane. The first officer seemed to care SO much about how everyone was parked. He was very committed to his job as it related to parking control. It was almost comical.

To Travel, To Remember

“What do you think is the best part of traveling—seeing new things, or coming home again?”

My favorite part of traveling is getting the opportunity to see new places. I can recall various mission trips to Oklahoma, the band trip to Florida and several trips to New York. On each of those trips I can remember enjoying the time spent on the road: sunshine streaming through the windows, conversation and light radio in the background, and beautiful scenery in the passing landscapes.

But the time spent in transit isn’t the only thing that I love about travel. The reservation that we stayed at in Oklahoma was beautiful. It was out in the country, surrounded by dirt roads. I can remember mornings getting up at sunrise and taking walks to the small town several miles out.

The great thing about Oklahoma was also getting the opportunity to work with the people there. The first year we worked to build a fence, and the next year a patio, while the third year we put on a vacation bible school for the local kids. Every year I was a part of the bell choir and banner team. It was an amazing experience.

That’s the thing about travel, it’s always an experience. It’s a chance to see and experience new things and to interact with new people. It’s the chance to grow, and learn and consider new possibilities.

Oklahoma sunrise.

Travel Ramble

If I could go anywhere in the world right this instant and not have to consider any responsibilities, I would jump in my car and just drive. I wouldn’t have any particular location that I would have to reach. The idea is soothing.

Sometimes I become easily immersed in whatever is stressing me out in the moment that it’s refreshing to imagine taking a step back and remembering to breathe. It often feels as though
I’ve forgotten to breathe. I don’t think of this notion as running away, so much as I consider it an opportunity to clear my head.

So many times whatever is stressing us out is related to a time or place it dwells in the atmosphere that surrounds us on a daily basis. We feel trapped by circumstances and regrets. Melancholy can be an overwhelming thing, an intangible wall that over time surrounds and encases us making escape seem impossible. There are moments when it is necessary to remove yourself from the equation, to forget the problem if even only for a moment in time.

There are so many things that I want to do, things that I need to do, and then there are the things that I am compelled to do. It is easy to feel weighed down by things that in hindsight are insignificant.