jj called

and he wants to know who your favorite character is on L O S T …

1.  tell me who.
2.  tell me why.
3.  give an example.

route 66, part III

– there was rain around albuquerque and other storms that caught up with us later

– moose!  deer!  these kinds of large-animal x-ing signs were all over the highway; it got to be scary, driving in the middle of the night, with zero street lights, hoping not to run into one of these beasts

– the texan terrain reminded me of a certain film … oh, heath!

– the following bumper sticker was on a big ol’ pick-up truck driving ahead of us in oklahoma:
       SILLY BOYS,
       TRUCKS ARE FOR COWGIRLS

– another huge storm approached from the north east as we blazed across missouri; we found it appropriate to dig for the doors cd and played it to our hearts’ content …
       riders on the storm!
       into this world we’re thrown

– the arch in st. louis was beautiful!  the highway whipped us around the city and past the large structure 

– between st. louis and indianapolis, around 3am when i had to stop for gas, the clerk unloaded some heavy life stuff going on with him right now; broken relationships, depression, alcohol … i have put together a little packet of things to send him that point to christ and will be sending it today or tomorrow; if there is an update on that later, i will let you know

– i’m reminded now of my plane ride to los angeles; i sat next to a girl who burst into tears telling me all about her grandfather who just died, her ex-boyfriend she moved with to hawaii, the relationships she has on the islands, and how strangely but truly she misses cleveland; i felt badly at the time because i was doped up on a heavy dosage of dramamine and was fighting to stay awake, but we were able to talk through some of her current struggles; i wonder now how she is doing

– once indianapolis was behind us, the extraordinary turned into ordinary; but ordinary does not necessarily mean bad; i love you, buckeye state!

– there were lots of people i talked to on this trip over a week and a half, and saw many new and beautiful places; what a blessing that i was able to experience such a cool trip with jordan before he gets married

thanks for reading!  i hope you feel more connected to me as i reflected back on that time of travel.

route 66, part II

– during a long stretch of highway, there was a car several yards in front of us; jordan reflected, “i think this is the biggest space i have experienced between me and another car in years.”

– for many hours, the visibility could be measured in miles all around us; we kept intersecting with trains that appear to extend forever; they were so beautiful and we felt so american; something about the combination of undeveloped land in the west and driving as if we were on a mission, like the train conductors

– the worst of the heat was in arizona; if we stuck our hands out the windows, the hot wind scorched them; throughout this time we drank bottles and bottles of water but never had to go to the bathroom because we were sweating like dogs; sounds gross, but it was a fun experience on which to look back

– we stopped for gas in flagstaff, then drove east while the sun set behind us on the mojave desert and the entire landscape, plains and mountains, turned gold; it was gorgeous

– somewhere along the line in texas, we happened upon the bible belt; how did we know?  because we passed the following sign:
       LARGEST CROSS IN THE WESTERN HEMISPHERE
       BEST SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCE OF YOUR LIFE*
       *parking available in rear
   suddenly we peaked on a hill and saw a large, steel monstrosity in the distance
   instead of embracing the best spiritual experience of our lives, jordan and i laughed and reverted back to the one who knows best: sir jon bon jovi …
       faith, you know you’re gonna live thru the rain
       lord you got to keep the faith
       faith, don’t let your love turn to hate
       right now we got to keep the faith
   we sang this very loudly out the windows as we passed by the structure of disgrace
   (anyone wanting to see video footage of this event, stop by the house and stay for a while!)

stay tuned for the final installment.

hp 7.5

year 7: chapter 5 “fallen warrior”, page 81

nobody spoke …

the rest of them now dropped into chairs, all except for harry, who remained standing.  the suddenness and completeness of death was with him like a presence.

this sorrowful post is dedicated to m-e.m.: well done, good and faithful servant.