Thank You Nick Hornby

After purchasing The Plot Against America by Philip Roth, The Brethren by Bob Woodward and Scott Armstrong, and High Fidelity by Nick Hornby, I began reading High Fidelity this afternoon at the Abilene Starbucks.

I'm not exactly sure why I chose High Fidelity, but the following excerpt confirms the greatness of the book.

"People worry about kids playing with guns, and teenagers watching violent videos; we are scared that some sort of culture of violence will take them over. Nobody worries about kids listening to thousands-literally thousands--of songs about broken hearts and rejection and pain and misery and loss. The unhappiest people I know, romantically speaking, are the ones who like pop music the most; and I don't know whether pop music has caused this unhappiness, but I do know that they've been listening to the sad songs longer than they've been living the unhappy lives."

Sleeping is Giving In, No Matter What the Time Is

Congratulations to Mr. James Watson Kizer for correctly naming "Superman" by Five for Fighting as the most recent Song of the Day.

My friends, I come to you from a familiar location this evening....The IceBurgh in Abilene, TX. I'll have more written words later, but for right now I will simply share photos from my last week at Trek for the summer.

I hope all of you enjoy these photos from my week with the Grapevine Church.

I'm More Than A Bird, I'm More Than a Plane

I am not a huge soccer fan by any means. The one season I spent in the Fall of 1994 playing for the Tyler Ajax did not cause me to catch the soccer bug, but after reading the Sports Guy's column detailing his search for an English Premier League team to support, I am enthralled by the passion and history of the EPL.

Perhaps the passion of the fans in the EPL is misunderstood because of the black eye that hooligans give to soccer fandom, but I'm pretty sure that you don't have an 1/8th of the support at the Ballpark of Arlington (Ameriquest Field, I refuse to acknowledge ye) that Liverpool has at a regular match at Anfield or the the Red Devils of Manchester United get at Old Trafford.

Even if you are not a soccer fan it's hard to watch this You Tube video montage of Liverpool captain Steven Gerrard's Top 10 goals without marveling at the skill and athleticism of athletes who play the world's favorite game at a championship level.

On to other news....this week will be my last one at Wilderness Trek for the summer of 2006 and I am going out with a bang. I will be guiding Grapevine Church of Christ on Mt. Ouray, which means that I will be joined on the journey by an all-star cast. Heath Huston, Cody Blair, Micah Moore, and Ms. Benay Dennis all came with the Grapevine crew and I cannot wait for the week to begin.

Hopefully, I will see many of you next weekend as I return to the Key City for the Wardell-Cooke wedding. Until then.....

A Two-Tone Ricky Ricardo Jacket and An Autographed Picture of Andy Devine

Friends, Romans, Countrymen, Loyal Readers......I have returned once again from the mountains bearing many gifts. Well, mostly it is pictures but who is keeping count? I had a great week on Mt. Crystal with a group from Christian Academy of San Antonio. Go Rams!

I would like to share my favorite quote of the week from a camper with all of you. The name has been changed to protect the innocent. When one of the campers suggested that we should turn back from the summit he justified his statement with this nugget of wisdom: "Just think about it, the mountains will be here at least 10 to 20 more years." That my friends is an apocalyptic vision of the world.

I hope all of you enjoy the photos from the week. You can find the first album here and the second album here. I'll be back with more tomorrow.

The Ferris Wheel Junkies Will Spin There Forever Instead

Everyone, I would like to share with you one of the greatest experiences that I have ever had in the mountains. This morning, I left with 4 other Trek staff members to do a sunrise summit on Mt. Yale (14,196 ft.). We left the trail head at 2:45 a.m. and arrived on summit at 5:45 a.m. in order to see the sun peeking above the horizon. Here is a link to the first set of photos and you can find the second set of photos here. Hopefully, I will be able to write a little tomorrow, but for right now I need to sleep.

Of Melodies Pure and True

Congrats to Sarah Carlson for naming "Why Does It Always Rain on Me?" by Travis as the Friday Song of the Day and to James Watson Kizer for naming "White Shadows" by Coldplay as the Saturday Song of the Day.

Another week gone, another week closer to what is next. I realize that last week I did not share some of my thoughts that I recorded during the week on trail and I would like to do that in this post. In the next post, I'll continue with my thoughts from this week...

7/5/06 11:57 a.m.--As I sit here during Solo time, I am amazed at how quickly the summer has gone by. It seems like yesterday I was pulling away from 203 Gatewood with the truck packed for a journey to Colorado. Now as I camp in the shadow of Casco Peak, the bloom of the rose for the summer has worn off but I am still amazed by how much God has to teach me each day. Each week on Trek is a different experience and this week has been another affirmation of that fact. This is Christ Church's first Trek experience and I have been thankful this week for the opportunity to experience this ministry with a group of wide-eyed first timers. At times their fervor borders on the annoying side, but it is a welcome surrounding at this point in the summer. May God continue to provide me with what I need this summer and not necessarily what I want.

7/5/06 5:30 p.m.--Today has been full of the worst weather that I have encountered on trail so far this summer. As the clouds move down Echo Canyon, they hang to the top of Bull Hill in an eerie image. These days remind me of how thankful I am for the days filled with sunshine. I finished Annapurna by Maurice Herzog this morning and it strikes me that no matter how much I don't want to get out of my sleeping bag tomorrow morning at 4:15, my environment is not more taxing than what Herzog, Lachenal, Terray, and the others of their expedition faced in the Himalayas. Father, tomorrow morning wake me with your joy for the day and for what you have to show us tomorrow. Grant us the strength to make it as far as you want us to tomorrow. May you be glorified in everything tomorrow. Amen.

7/6/06 6:31 p.m.--My week with Christ Church has been one of the most interesting that I have had so far this summer. Despite the fact that so many things seem to have gone wrong for them during this journey they have remained resilient until the end. One of my favorite quotes from Ralph Waldo Emerson states, "That which is behind us and that is which before us are nothing compared to that which is within us." So much of life is about the attitude that we bring into the various situations that we encounter. One of the most rewarding parts of this ministry is seeing the personal growth and transformationthat takes place during a week on Trek.

Everything You Ever Wanted In a Permanent State

I know that it happens every summer, but it always catches me by surprise. During the course of a week at Trek, the staff meets on Saturday mornings to learn about their next week on trail: Where will my group be from? Who will I be working with? Which mountain will I be climbing? All of these questions are answered in a typical staff meeting. We also spend time in worship each week, but one week is different.

Today was that day.

During one staff meeting each summer we draw from the example of Jesus as we wash each other's feet. Now, maybe some of you have done a similar activity to imitate the service of Jesus towards the apostles but for some reason at Trek it is incredibly special.

Perhaps it is the fact that our feet are incredibly dirty and calloused from weeks and weeks hiking up and down mountains. Maybe it is because we often forget that we need to be filled up with the love of Christ before we can pour that out to each and every person that we come in contact this summer. I'm not sure what the special ingredient is, but I am always humbled during this day.

Quick Thoughts on a rainy Saturday Afternoon

• Right now, I'm listening to Karma Chamelon by Culture Club. Say what you will but it's one catchy tune.
• I sleep better on the mountain than I do at Base Camp. Maybe I'll just take a Thermarest down to Waco this fall. I'm sure my aunt and uncle would not mind if I slept in the back yard.

Even When the Sun is Shining I Can't Avoid the Lightning

Like a bad penny, I just keep turning up. I had a rainy, rainy week on Casco Peak with Christ Church of Mobile, but that did not stop us from enjoying another week in God's playground.

I'm sorry to say that I forgot to purchase batteries for my digital camera last weekend so there will not be any pictures from the week for the forseeable future. Don't despair, I'll see if I can track some down, but for right now you will have to settle for a written account, which will be provided tomorrow.

For now I would like to leave you with some quick thoughts on a Friday night in Salida, CO.

• I'm nowhere near a shoreline but I have found myself listening to a lot of Jimmy Buffett this summer. Maybe it's because you cannot listen to Buffett or Marley without being in a good mood or it could be something else.
• I have not been able to watch much of the World Cup this summer but I am going with the French in the final over Italy. Zidane will ride off into the sunset with the trophy or do something that is the French equivalent.
• After finishing Annapurna on Wednesday, I began The Broker by Grisham today. The lesson here: sometimes you eat Powerbars, sometimes you eat Cocoa Puffs. I'll explain later.
• If the Rangers can hang close until September mabye they'll take the division. What? You don't believe me. Well, it's hard for me to believe too, but up here I'm living in blissful ignorance.

The Lights Are On On the Street Where You Live

Faithful blog readers, I am coming to you tonight live from the Goudeau house in Colorado Springs. The ladies and gentlemen of the Sunday rotation for Wilderness Trek decided to take a relaxing day away from the madness that is Salida and the Springs has provided a welcome retreat.

It is always odd to make the transition from living in a bunkhouse and sleeping outside to being in someone's house for a night or so. For some odd reason it feels like I have snuck into a house where the owners do not know I have taken up residence.

I'm pretty sure that if Heather gets weak in the knees when she walks into an Urban Outfitters, I do the same when I enter a Barnes and Noble or Borders. I had to restrain myself from purchasing American Pastoral by Philip Roth and Ladies and Gentlemen the Bronx is Burning this evening when we visited the Borders located at the Chapel Hills Mall.

If all of this sounds like the inane ramblings of a book obsessed nerd then I apologize but books have always held a special place in my heart and a store filled with books that are waiting to be read is always one of my favorite places.

I began reading Annapurna by Maurice Herzog yesterday. It is the author's account of the first successful ascent of an 8,000 meter peak and its harrowing aftermath. Upon further reflection my trend this summer of reading books that contain extreme surroundings has been continued with my choice of Herzog's work. Despite only having 4 hours of sleep last night, I am able to stay awake as I read the book but that might also be the four cups of coffee that I drank this morning. You never know...