I heart "Funitions Day!"

Playing over the small speakers in front of me a is a band I've come to really enjoy lately. Meet "Manchester Orchestra."
Hi guys!

They're an indie/rock band out of Atlanta, Georgia, and they're quite a lot of fun to listen to.
Today is "Funitions Day" where I take studying for a final and make it not so oppressive. Without further ado, lets experience some words and definitions together that would make any healthcare worker either collapse in disbelief or run screaming "I need an adult" from the building.

Presbycusis: a way to tell your grandparents they're losing their vision and shouldn't drive any longer without saying "PULL OVER PULL OVER PULL OVER!"

Astimatism: "A what? I can't see what you're saying."

Otalgia: "My ear hurts." "Your ear hurts?" "Yeah, it hurts." "Where?" "All over." "All over?" "Yeah." "Oh. That's really weird. You're like thirty years old. I don't think that's normal."

Autism: Have your best friend with you to say you have this, and you're allowed to throw a rock at anyone you want.

Cephalgia: "I have a headache." "Oh. That's called cephalgia." "Whatever. My head hurts."

UTI: If you don't know what this means, you're a man.

Alopecia: "Alopecia, alpaca...same thing." Those two words would mean a bald llama.

Lesion: What your physician puts down when you have a mole removed so the insurance company isn't sure whether or not it was cancerous, and they cover you anyway.

Masticate: It only means to chew! Jeez.

Halitosis: When your child says "I already DID!" and they truly have brushed their teeth but their breath still smells repulsive.

Bipolar Disorder: When your North and South poles swap places in a five minute-span. (See: menstrual cycle)

ADD: All Dad's Doing.

Anesthesiologist: The man who's sole job it is to make sure they wake back up.

Glaucoma: So let's say that your eye is a nicely filled water balloon. If you were to start adding water slowly, drop by drop, the pressure would grow and soon all you'd be able to see is not much at all. (Hint: sunglasses don't help this.)

Strabismus: What occurs when one of your eyes figures the other one's got it.

Proctologist: Someone has to do it. Someone has to look up butts all day long. (And I don't mean they find them in the dictionary either.)

It was a cold, sunshiney, beautiful day today. Both Jessa and I were getting ready for our day on the phone together, full of switching to speakerphone, "hang on a second", and multitasking. There aren't a lot of things in life like being in love. For something that happens and has happened millions of times through the ages, it still feels pretty dang original. I love it.
While waiting for the light rail, I watched a young male rapping shamelessly standing leaning against the outside of a bank wall. Politics, romance, family, white people, even food fell prey to his light-hearted and vicious onslaught of verbage. I wondered to myself if I should A.) admire his confidence, B.) write it off as juvenile cockiness, or C.) hand him a dollar twenty-nine and ask for his first hit single on iTunes to be free for only me. I picked option D.)
Try to find a song on my iPod that closely matched his lip movement.
Settling on a particular aggressive Vivaldi movement, I happily stared, enjoying the moment and soaking it all in until the rail cars slid up behind me.
Another day in Denver.
I love this city.

As I read, the more I learn I don't know.

G.K. Chesterton writes in his book Orthodoxy...a lot. He writes honestly in his "shoot from the hip" style, bluntly striking at the heart of the topics his philosophical mind has chosen. As his words fly across my eyes and horizontally into my unphilosophical mind, I realize more and more that I have so much to learn. Chesterton's autobiography is filled with a healthy combination of amusing and deep, meaningful observations of humanity.
Easily one of the most completely engrossing books I've read lately, I find myself wondering about my own perspective, my own worldview, and my own thoughts. That is my reason behind the statement that he is an incredibly powerful communicator.
To write in a way so as to have the reader examining themselves...that is my definition of literary greatness. The statement stands no classic test of time, nor have I loads of examples with which to prove my point, but that's what makes it my point and not a general statement. It's entirely subjective.
And I stand by it.

Fact Monday.

If you can't substitute the word "confuzzled" for "confused" in whatever statement you're trying to make, then you're speaking wrong.

Random List Day

Today is Random List day.

1. New favorite word to say when making a joke: "bazinga!"
2. Snow is still white, still all over, and somehow although being so clean and pretty makes my windshield muddy when I'm driving. Dang you residual dirt.
3. Yesterday I was quite abruptly reminded that "yes James, you still have a temper." Curse you fiery little jerk swooning in and out of hibernation.
4. Songs that include numbers in their verses like "3, 4, 5" are my favorite. The remnants of a Sesame Street upbringing? 
5. There are many, many ways to eat on a budget of twenty dollars a month, but it also requires second and third homes that are willing to feed you in exchange for goods and services, such as babysitting. Bazinga!
6. Having someone who doesn't mind telling you they love you every night before you go to bed makes it easier to fall asleep.
7. All pleasant surprises from college administrations are not dead. I found out today that one of my classes is in fact a "7 week class" and will be ending next week. 
8. Huge, ridiculously fat people can be told directly that they have an abnormality with their adipose tissue. That abnormality is that there's so much of it, and the adipose tissue is a physician's way of saying "fat."
9. Jules Verne wrote really well for having a girly name.
10. "Paraguay" sounds like you're saying someone's name in pig latin.
11. Family photos would be far, far more interesting if every family member had a tendency to scrunch up their nose when smiling in pictures. 
12. Find  a movie title that isn't a cliche. Shouldn't that be a sign about entertainment?
13. The love of huge, heavy books filled with content I don't have the slightest clue about trying to understand is an acquired taste, one that opens my salivary glands now, which is probably something I'd find an explanation for in each one of them.
14. Bazinga. Who am I kidding? I don't understand the content in ANY book!

A Snowy Saturday.

I love words. Writing, reading, speaking...words are incredible. Take these lyrics from one of my recent favorite Christian hardcore rock/metal bands, called "We Came As Romans."

We’ve planted a seed, an ever growing wonder to a beautiful tree. Grow.
Each branch outstretched and different from the last.
Where the old have broken, some easier than the last.
The right ones have grown in to fill in the gaps.
And all are equal in love and trust.
And all are a part of something so much bigger than this.
Through the trials our tongues are tied, to trying times, so many unsaid lines.
Our lives were over at so many moments, so many.
And now they’re all just beginning.
I have never been so consumed and I have never loved it more.
To be devoted to letting all see what it is to live in the love of others.
To live in the love of my brothers.
And spilling back all that anyone has ever spilled for me.
To show that to those who have never seen.
Four years ago we planted a seed.
Found that foundation that we need.
Strived for the perfect balance, to show love and show compassion.
And our vision for this world will not die when we are dead.
My future started with the first note I ever played.
The first note that was ever sang.
When we started living with purpose and writing with meaning.
This is what we were made for.
Every day I live this future.

I decided that I'd start writing a children's story, but one that my peers would enjoy reading and I would enjoy writing. It's actually more work than I thought it would be, but I'm learning quite a bit as a go.
Yesterday I called Youth For Christ and told them that I'd like to start working for them. They said they had no positions available, but after a few minutes of hearty back-and-forthing, they realized I was being sincere when I said it didn't matter. I'm really interested to see what God has for me with them, I love what they do and the heart behind the organization. I wonder what God is doing there, and what He'll do in me? I'll be volunteering until a staff position opens up.

This morning I woke up, started my day, then checked my phone to see several sweet, encouraging texts from my Lady. Definitely an unexpected bright start to my Saturday. Even just a few sentences of sincere encouragement are surprisingly powerful to the recipient, I would encourage you to try it a few times. It really strengthens your relationship and interactions with that person in a huge way, definitely give it a shot.

Random fact: "a shot" is actually a length of 44.3602943 millimeters. Cool, huh?

Reappearance

After an extended "absence" of sorts where my priorities of writing came slowly to a standstill, resting elsewhere than online (i.e. homework, life...etc) I am now ready to again begin where I once left off.

Wow. I have so much to be thankful for. Here I sit in a warm room writing on my laptop that sits on a desk filled with homework reminding me that yes, after two and a half years I am back in college again. Last night was our bible study which is more like an hour of sharing and an hour of prayer, and God has really blessed so many of our lives in a huge way. Sunday was church, about a dozen people now come regularly, filling our small home with laughter, joy, and an incredible close and personal community of believers.

I love this group so much, it's been incredible seeing how active God is in each one of our lives.

And of course...there's my beautiful girlfriend. It was amazing to spend some time with her here in Denver, we had a blast reading poetry in a coffee shop downtown, babysitting the family she stayed with, and going on walks in the evening.

One of my favorite memories with her was when it was her last day here, we were sitting on the couch and Rose Starr (the Mom of the family she stayed with) said "alright kids, go sit with James and Jessa so we can take a picture with them! There was so much laughter, wriggling, funny faces, poking, and climbing on people. Then the level of energy in the living room was elevated considerably for the rest of the evening.

Just even the story of how God worked out all the details for her to visit my family in Montana with me, then the two of us driving back to Denver together is a complete testimony to how real God is, and how involved He is in my life. I'm so thankful.

Why on earth would there be a picture of Disney World on my blog?

Well, maybe because I'm insanely and cataclysmically thrilled to be going there in March with Jessa's family. Accompanying the family's vacation is a road trip from Little Rock, Arkansas to Orlando and back. What better way to get to know someone's family then go on a road trip with them?

Alright, maybe being caught in a hurricane or starting a large corporation with them would be a better way of becoming familiar with their personalities and views on life...but this is pretty dang close.

It snowed yesterday evening, making for a beautiful night and an even prettier day today. I love the weather here in Denver. Especially the quiet that has lighted on the streets, roof tops and neighborhoods accompanying the white powder and afternoon sunshine.

cold evenings.

Twenty minutes until I leave for my last Hebrew class this semester. Sad day. It's been incredible to crawl, scrabble, desperately claw at, and try to devour as much of this deliciously difficult language for a semester.

Hebrew is like learning how to swim in a beautiful sea. I mostly played near shore this semester, splashing along the sand only a few times venturing out to where I couldn't reach, but the more confident I became in venturing out, the clearer the water, the more beautiful the fish, and the more refreshing it became. It also required more language "muscles" to swim with all the currents and undertow of grammar waves and shifting tides of rules.

Ah, George Winston, my memories of you playing on our old early 90's massive 5-disc Kenwood speaker system throughout our house at Christmastime when I was young, seasoning our fall and wintery Hawaiian holidays with beautiful piano serenades.

Your music is synonymous with emoting, family, and relaxation.

Seattle, here I come.

A catered meal

Jason and I went out to the dollar theater tonight to watch a "MAN MOVIE." We picked this movie: This film was produced by Gerard Butler (featured above), who also played the main character, a vengeance-driven vigilante for "right" who kills many, many in the Philadelphia justice system to make a statement of vivid social commentary: the United States' justice system is broken. Several things stood out in this film, setting it apart from the drama/intense thrillers I've seen. First of all, despite brutal imagery and a deft, complex plot, and unrealistic chain of events, the film's message by some miracle of the cinema, remained intact. Our justice system is in fact, broken. Ending on a "the bad guy doesn't win" note, the point of this film was never redeemed. Our justice system is broken with no possible hope of being fixed. Jason and I walked out of that theater, our minds buzzing. A twenty-minute car drive later, and we had reached a conclusion, a point we agreed on (which for him and I can tend to be few and far between.) Aye, our justice system is shattered, marred, corrupted and anything but it's name. But aside from God, there is no answer. Our position in life of hopelessness, sinning our way through life to unavoidable and eventual eternal damnation exists because God is Just. But would we ever want a God who wasn't just? A God who cheated, who didn't follow rules and was changing all the time "because He loved us?" No. No one wants a God who isn't perfect, who isn't just. And so I am broken, shattered, marred and corrupt beyond redemption. Save from the grace of that same God. This film pointed irrevocably that we as people, humanity as a whole, can never, never hope to create a justice system that is actually just...apart from God. While that is sobering, it is not hopeless. It is not hopeless because we as humans are given Jesus. Grace from a loving and just God who sacrificed His son. Tonight's film was startling, vicious, and true. But it wasn't complete. Today I again recognized that without grace from a just God, I am no better than a man who murders a family, or his avenger that destroys an entire Philadelphia justice system. No, apart from God I am Clyde Shelton. I'm so thankful for my Savior. Romans 2:1-4 *Note: the dollar theater, where you don't have to have actual money to watch movies anymore, is pretty sweet. Who cares if Jason and I were the lightest people by a difference of at least 200 lbs? ---

I'm losing control and it tastes yummy.

God is so good.

This Christmas it was going to be that I would be here in Denver, staying at home, and spending Christmas evening with a local family I feel very much a part of. *Insert disclaimer. But it wouldn't be my family. Enter me, at my reluctant submissive stage I find myself at startlingly often. (Talking to God)

"Alright. I'm going to be here. If that's what you have for me, I'll be thankful for my amazing Denver friends and realize that this is growing up. I'll enjoy finding out about someone else's Christmas, and still dive in to what it means to be your child."

End of conversation, and I still have a slightly sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. Growing up isn't always as fun as I imagined it. Enter God. (Paraphrased)

"*Sigh. Hi James. Finally. I've been here, waiting for you for...eternity. (God smiles) I knew you'd show up eventually. Cause I'm God! I know that stuff. So let's talk about Christmas, I have plans for you. Oh yes, I have plans. See, I needed for you to submit it to me and realize that it was completely out of your control, now I get to do my thing and encourage you, lift you up and show you that I love you. You know I love you, but I get to show you again! This is one of my favorite parts about being God you know, showing all my kids how much I love them. This time of year sometimes it's tough, but I still love it. Mkay, ready?"

James checks his facebook several weeks ago. On it his sister mentions that she is getting rid of her car and that there's someone in Denver who'd like it. James starts to hope, then stops and picks up his phone instead. Fifteen minutes later he's even more hopeful. Maybe he'll get to drive the car back to Denver for the family interested in it. Enter today. James wakes up, yawns, and starts his day. Several hours later, God smiles. It's all done, everything is worked out. James will be flying out to Seattle and spending Christmas with his brother-in law and sister and niece and nephew. I have a lot to learn. In Genesis 12, God gives His first promise to Abraham. That's not a very long time, twelve chapters. And then in chapter 22, He repeats it to Abraham, only ten chapters later. God has been more than faithful in my life, whispering and showing me His promises for me, then repeating them only chapters later. Today I recognize that this Christmas will be different, very different, because I have a God who waits patiently for me. Psalm 139 1-10 ¹ O LORD, you have searched me and you know me.

² You know when I sit and when I rise; you perceive my thoughts from afar.

³ You discern my going out and my lying down; you are familiar with all my ways.

⁴ Before a word is on my tongue you know it completely, O LORD.

⁵ You hem me in—behind and before; you have laid your hand upon me.

⁶ Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain.

⁷ Where can I go from your Spirit? Where can I flee from your presence?

⁸ If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, ^a]">[a] you are there.

⁹ If I rise on the wings of the dawn, if I settle on the far side of the sea,

¹⁰ even there your hand will guide me, your right hand will hold me fast.

I decided I feel like a shirtless baby making a funny face. -I'm excited about this Christmas.-