WEll i'm up here at a&m in the student computing center writing this blog - i took off from my house at about 10 am - and i got here - i needed to come up here for a few reasons - 1 is to get a shot at the health center - why there? you may ask - because its alot cheaper - esp. for the menigitis shot - so i tossed my new bike in the back of my truck on the way up herre - figuring i'd ride around campus - and thats exactly what did - and it has been one of the coolest things - to ride around-and people just look at me not like a visiting high school student but - as a normal college kid on his way to class - it just amazed me - it really was one of the coolest feelings - and i dunno - maybe i'm just acting like an excited freshman - but thats what i am - and thats ok. i ate lunch at quiznos up here and the girl who had very little clue a/b properly making a quiznos sandwich dumped so much carbonara sauce on it - i thought i was gonna choke - anyhow - i got a permanent assignment - and i'm in crocker - on the north side - and i'm rooming with this guy named george austin mccurry - i havent talked to him yet - but i imagine i will sooner or later-
and i'm not sure if ben and i are going to try and switch but - i'm not sure if we are going to do that -

anyhow - i'm very excited -

its very crazy - this is the last day of july - this is far and away the fastest summer yet - its just flying by - wow

I'm in Hazlett, New Jersey - at my aunts house- and i'm having fun - its been pretty miserable weather herre - but tomorrow i get to go to the beach with my cuzin's and my brother and his gf kelly - yay - and we get to go to the boardwalk as well -

friday i will get to go visit west point - and i'm very excited - hopefully i'll get to see pete and chip and wrendon and adrian - that would make this trip really great -ya know?

fantasy football is starting up and that makes me excited

college is coming up and that makes me excited too - i just wish i knew where i was living - bummer...

i've met alot of people who i'm looking forward to hanging out w/ next year - whoohoo

i'll update my blog at a later time- so check in with it

I just got back from playing wiffle-ball at the church - it was so much fun - we played 2 games and my team won both - it was so fun to play ball again just like when i was a little kid - ghost runners and pegs and everything

anyhow - food time

This is such an exciting time in my life - i'm getting ready to go off to college - and i just got a bike - its a sweet Haro - V1 - and i'm gonna get a computer - i finally broke down and decided on a PC - but i'm gonna get a dell Axim as well -so thats exciting - i think i'm gonna buy myself an IPOD from Mac and some new oakleys with my birthday money and the leftover cash from graduation -

anyhow - i'm ready - ready to go off - ready to start new - ready for a challenge, new people, new places, new everything - and its close enough to home - to make a weekend trip - but far enough away, barely -

i'm ready

This sucks

everyone is getting their housing assignments except for me -i'm really bummed - i just want to be in a dorm - even in a temporary space - and i want to figure it out - i just wanna get it over with - dang...maybe i can room with ben - maybe not - hopefully though i can be exactly where God wants me - and i know that i will - its just such a bummer that i hear stories and stuff - and i'm not in yet - anyhow - i won my 2 games at king of the beach -so i'm in our bracket finals - and hopefully i'll win that tonite

today i was driving along and i saw a sign for "sno-cones" and it pointed down a street - so i turned around and proceeded to support the local industrious attitudes of some young entrepreneurs - i pull up and they charge me 1 dollar for a 'sno-cone' served in a 16 oz. styro. cup - it was mostly ice and it had just a little bit of flavoring - so - it was like slightly flavored ice not a sno cone - but its ok - i was glad to pay them and tip them a quarter each - those young guys are up to something good - keepin out of trouble...ha

anyway - as i was driving along - eating my crushed ice - i started to think - hey - i would expect some young'ns like that to overdo the flavoring

instead - they under-flavored it - bummer...

i'm over at miori's updating and my family just told me that we're going to New York in the next few weeks - yay

update time -

i am up at a&m for my orientation - and i'm having a really good time - surprisingly -

i'm getting really really excited about just like - getting into the world of college - being on my own and meeting SO MANY NEW PEOPLE - its really very cool -

i got my ID today and i signed up for my claim account - so i can access everything like - schedules and stuff - but tomorrow will be the real test at 1:30 when it becomes a crapshoot for classes - its crazy - i'm sure i'll blog at a later time - but i just got back from mission trip in chicago - it was way awesome - definately taken out of my comfort zone was i - walking the streets of englewood ya know - the 3rd roughest neighborhood in America - 1st in chicago - it was quite and experience - stories later

well - my deepest apologies for those of you who have visited my blog within the past few weeks and have seen no such update - its a shame that there is not more time in the day to do the things i would like to do - i.e. blogging, sleeping, et cetera...

however - since my last post - i've done a few amazing things - first of all - i've graduated from high school - i am going to Texas A&M University in College Station next year and i'm unbelievably excited - so far this summer i've already visited the following places (in chronological order):

Panama City Beach, Florida
Miami, Florida
Labadee, Haiti
Ocho Rios, Jamaica
Georgetown, Grand Caymans
Cozumel, Mexico
Cleveland, Ohio (layover)
Greensboro, North Carolina

and i'm scheduled to fly from N.C. to Chicago, Illinois, and then back to Spring

I calculated that of the 30 days in June, I've spent 9 at home, that means - sleeping and eating in my house. Its kinda upsetting - i really would love to spend alot more time with my friends - however i did get to go to Panama City Beach with my chruch youth group and on a 7 day cruise with Kyle Craddock and some other guys including Daniel Lockley and Rob Davis. Kyle and I met some girls from Minnesota - they have funny accents - Howdy girls, if you're reading this -

After coming home from the cruise on Saturday, I left this past wednesday morn for North Carolina, since my brother Steven is playing in the 2003 Southern Regional. Select soccer teams are part of United States Youth Soccer Assn. - and they have a national tournament - starting within the state - so the state champions go on to 1 of 4 regional championships to face other state champs - and the regional winners meet in the Final Four of the nation at 'nationals' in Baltimore. So, Steve's team has made it thus far and hopefully they'll do well at this regional tournament. I get to watch 3 of their games then i leave for Chicago - and our missions trip with our church - i'm really excited to get to serve in
Chicago - When i get back on the 7th - i immediately go to A&M for my testing and NewStudent Conference - where i get my schedule for next year - what i'm hoping for is no 8 am classes and no classes on friday -however - i will sacrafice either one to get one of those 2

I WILL POST later this week before i leave - regarding feelings and thoughts i've had in the past few weeks - thanks for reading this - and please continue to be my friend - ha.

thank you for visiting my blog

well let me...uhh...'clarify some things'
1st of all - i edited my last post to pacify upset critics - maybe i shared a little too much
2nd of all - never did i ever say that catholicism was wrong - i know that its a religion that people believe in - i know this - i'm not denying it or criticizing it at all - in fact - its believes coincide with mine as a Christian - i would classify myself as a non-denominational Christian - not a Baptist or Methodist or Catholic - i'm just a christian - but all i mean by my comments about the museum - was that i was confused as to some of the thoeretical reasons behind such an extravagant display - i mean - i'll stick by what i said in that, some parts didnt make sense to me, i simply was confused about the extravagance with which it was presented - i wish i had someone there to ask questions of but since i didnt - i still remain confused to this day
- the art was amazing, from the papal tiaras to the plaster reliefs of bernini to the drawings of michelangelo - and the educational value of the exhibit was undeniable as well - i learned alot about the catholic religion as well as other religions (there being a section of how catholicism - the Pope to be more specific - interacts with other religions - i.e. the 'Thanka' hand stitched by the Dali Lama, given to John Paul in '79 i believe it was)
and i'm sorry if i personally offended anyone with my comments -in NO WAY do i HATE the catholic church or anyone who is catholic-and i pray that no one mistakes me as an ignorant, hateful, bigot
i'm sure that i'm the only one with views differing from others- but isnt that what makes us all diverse? the fact that we can get along in the midst of our differing feelings.

Well i went to the museum of natural science today and i saw an exhibit on Popes and the Vatican - it was really cool - and a few things came to my mind as i meandered through the exhibit:
1- old people have nothign to do during the day - i realize that this is an exhibit which might spark more interest in older people than younger ones, however - there was just a complete domination of women over 65 - with white hair parading around in groups yelling to each other since they couldnt understand their own words over the "audio tour earphone set" they were wearing...it was so bad- i would gently wisper (it is a museum after all) "excuse me ma'am" and even slightly tap them on the shoulder - no response - it was so stupid - like i tried not to get frustrated but it was futile - however the exhibit was nice but it did spark another set of feelings:
2- with all the starving people all over the world as well as the instability in the catholic church (so it seems to an onlooker) i found all of these exhibits unbelievably, outrageously too much - as i walked through, the exhibit was selfguided and began with many works of art from painters and sculptors ranging from modern works to works from the 400's - paintings, frescos, statues, etc.- and that was very nice - some of the reliefs done by bernini were unbelieveable - then we got to the papal artifacts part of the exhibit - and thats were my mind raced - as i walked through -looking at jeweled crowns made of gold and rubys and diamonds, i thought to myself - wow - this is completely unnecessary - now i understand - it is part of a history of the catholic church - and these were implemented in the past into the papal vocation, however - it just seemed like too much - from the 30 pound hand embroidered gowns that the popes wore once or twice, to the exhuberant staffs made of sterling silver with picutres of the crucifix decorated with rubies and gems. i thought - and actually heard a few comments very close to this one: "i probably shouldnt be saying this but, ya know what - with all of the poor children throughout the world, and the catholic third world countries, it seems as if this is all a little much" - and when i heard that - yea....anyhow - so we went on to see the velvet ivory chair in which the newly elected pope (elected by all of the worlds cardinals) rides around the streets of the vatican and rome in, and we saw the pure white ostritch tail feathers with which him and the 12 men who carry the throne on his shoulders are fanned off with - and it just seemed to me that this isnt what a religion should be all about - it should be about a relationship with God -

thats just my feelings - take it for what you wish -

that was my exciting day - ben also got an airsoft gun - and we're having a war at will's old house at 8 - bring the pain, girls

And prom is over

the beach was so much fun i cant believe it - we shot each other with airsoft guns, snuggled around fires, played in the ocean, traded money with each other through hours and hours of poker, and ate much food provided by the girls.

What a great memory

As we were walking out of capital Grille, where we ate, matt skains sees a ferrari and gawks, so the owner comes up and starts talkign to him; skains is telling him about his car's specs and the guys like - hey - hop in - check this out and so skains does, wait it gets better, he lets skains start it up, wait it gets better, he tells skains he races them and gives him his card "call me and we'll go driving" he says to skains, and he goes on "if your group didnt have to leave, i would let you drive it." so our group doesnt leave - and he drives it around westheimer and streets for a few minutes - wow -like this is a silver FERARRI - like amazing - any how

ape was a blast - my roommate won a digital camera, and i didnt win anything - except a good time

i got accepted into a&m - i'm very relieved and excited so, yea...

PROM WAS FUN.

VERY FUN.

AND THE FUN IS STILL COMING.

YES!

Wow - how about that

Prom 2003 is here! I cant believe it - i remember going last year w/ Chelsea Meyer - hey chelsea

i cant wait - tonite i'm having a cookout for our group who wants to come over then - tom. we take pictures at 4 - dinner at 530 - waterwall- to the sofitel for the dance - back to APE - then to galveston and our beach houses -

i'm so freakin' pumped - i have an AWESOME DATE - my girlfriend brittany.....thats part of the reason why i'm so excited - and all of my best friends - i get to spend the weekend with too

well i'll be sure to update with stories and some pictures

There ya go
i just got back from oklahoma - visiting the University of Oklahoma and Whitney

it was really cool - i loved the campus - it really is nicer than a&m's but i'm not sure what i'm going to do
i have a deicion to make between the 2 schools and its really tough - i dont know what to do -

oh well

i stayed with whitney in her new summer house and her roomate was not there the first night so my mom and i got a room - saturday after i went on a tour of the campus, i was very tired so i went to take a nap and whatever - my mom went shopping and whitney was napping in the other room - and her roomate (who was graduating that day) decided to bring her whole family - over to see her house she was living in this summer - and her room happend to be the one i was napping in - so this is how the situation worked out
-i hear whitney get up and welcome them to the house and i think to myself - you have 3 options here (as i was sleeping in ONLY my shorts)
1. Get up and shut the door quickly -
2. Pretend to be asleep as they peek in the room
3. Get up, put a shirt on and go meet the people - expecting them to be gone in a few minutes

now this isnt a particularly big house - so you can here where people are and stuff
so i hear whitney say "and this is my room..." (next door) and i think "ok - decision time" - so i decide option 3 - get up and put a t-shirt on - and just as i bound off the bead and dive for a t-shirt - whitney's roomate's sister peeks her head in - and sees my scrambling through my stuff on the side of the bed for a t-shirt - and i think she happened to see me dive off the bed as well - and i KNOW she noticed whitney coming from down the hall when she came to greet the guests...so i said - "hi." and the situation was awkward from the get-go
so i walk in to the living room - down the hall - and i notice her sister is pregnant and sitting down - and we catch eyes as i step in to the room and i just smile and nod and listen and meet some people and afterward - i got to tell whitney and her roomate - the story - it was very funny i must say....yea - anyhow - i did have a great time this weekend though visiting OU - thanks again whitney and janna for letting me stay w/ ya'll - and thanks mom - for being my mom and for driving up there and staying with me too

Variety show is over
and so is the weekend following it -
we have some excellent new standleaders and some standleaders that i personally am bewildered at how they made it -i'm just beside myself at the list of people who didnt make it - more than i am at the people who did make it - i mean - it was crazy - i was at tryouts and i saw who did well and who had crappy tryouts and crappy shirts - i saw that and i remembered and i'm pretty sure that every standleader there voted for many of the people who didnt make it - and i'm not sure about the teachers but - it just seems so weird to me - who knows

well its over and its really too bad to see my school year end - especially such a big part of it - eh...but its ok - soon enough i'll be opening a new chapter in my life...we'll see

Well herre i sit, its 9 52 and i just woke up. I love going in late - its really really great, and i certainly want to have late classes in college - ya know - the 10 am classes followed by the 2 pm then be done for a day

but i know that may not happen, especially if i get into a&m late

well i'm fixing to go get breakfast, on a school day

its miori's bday tom. - happy bday bud if you are reading this - we're playing tonite - and you're gonna have a blast

i'm so sick and tired of klein's administration and how i have limits on what i can and cant do in school - i'm not talking about crazy things - i'm talking about - walking down the hall during lunch, where i get stopped asking where i'm going
"i'm not in school ma'am, matt and i dont have a class right now, we are running errands"
"ok, well where is your pass?"

"ma'am you dont understand, we arent in school, we dont have a class right now"
"well, son, i dont think i can let you go down the hall without a pass"



go figure...and wait - tardies - i may not have exemptions - somethign else from high school that i wont be dealing with in a few months
i might not keep them if i'm tardy 2 more times - see - i have to be at a certain place when they tell me to - my life is controlled by bells
and i'm sick of it

very sick of it

very, very, extremely sick of it

Yo everyone - i hope all is well

i got done with another weekend and boy and am i tired

it was filled with poker, ninjas and variety show rehersals
holy crap - some people cant focus on anything and get done what needs to get done
instead, they want to goof around and stay at the school wasting time because they dont want to go home

eh...o well - its gonna be worth it friday - when the show is - and next years standleaders will be named...wow

its so crazy to think that i have 4 weeks left in the year...in my high school life - its just wild

I'm about to post my SATIRICAL ESSAY that i wrote for english the other day -
i got some bad vibes after reading my essay and i wanted to make sure that no person felt singled out and hurt by my comments
i was hoping that everyone who heard me read aloud our assignment - as we were supposed to - would realize that this was supposed to be an EXTREME, OUTRAGEOUS EXAMPLE...but - i think that some ppl really thought i might do this - wow - that blows me away - it was a satire - (see dictionary.com) for definition - and it had a ring of truth to it - but just about the issue - here
you make the call...remember - THIS IS A SATIRICAL ESSAY



My Modest Proposal (Based on Jonathan Swift's "A Modest Proposal"

In Jon Bon Jovi’s song Its My Life he says “It's my life / It's now or never / I ain't gonna live forever / I just want to live while I'm alive”. This seems to be the feeling of many teenagers today. Anyone should be allowed to do what they want; why should we respect authority – and obey the rules that apply to our lives. Because they are stupid, because they have no meaning and those who made the rules just “don’t get it” or “have no clue what its like living today”. A certain area where many teenagers feel as if they have the right to blatantly disregard the rule is with alcohol. It is evident today in many high schools especially – both public and private, that underage drinking has gotten far out of control. Teenagers with immaturity lack the discipline and the critical thinking skills to disregard opportunities to be, and subsequently drive intoxicated. Many teenagers feel as if it is their lives, and why should they let opportunities for fun pass them by? You only live once you know, many will say, however, I propose that in “living life to the fullest” there is quite a high risk of death as well.
If someone is to notice that on a typical weekend during the school year, many high school students make the decision to drink and drive, they would realize how big an issue it really is. I believe that I have found a way to solve this problem. In order to solve the problem, a complex plan would need to be put into place, however, this plan would only need to be done once in a wide mile radius of subdivisions. I would use an informant to find out where there would be a party where underage drinking might occur – and have that informant contact the event coordinator when someone who is evidently intoxicated is leaving the party to drive under the influence. The coordinator would then take a number of armored vehicles and follow the intoxicated driver until the right opportunity presented itself for one of the vehicles to slam into the car with the driver, making sure that the car would subsequently burst into flames, and the driver would be killed by either the violent crash or the burning aftermath. Some people think that teenagers think they are invincible, and I must admit, that sometimes, as a teenager I feel that way too. I believe that a public sacrifice of a teen drunk driver would definitely make others feel as if they weren’t invincible, and perhaps cause many to realize what a horrid mistake underage drinking is. If one were to take a close look, they would realize how out of hand it has gotten and how many teens don’t have enough strength to say no to peers and to realize what a bad thing it is, and see how they could easily support my proposal. There are a few advantages to this “sacrifice”. For example, to reiterate, people would definitely have a wake up call, and someone would lose a friend. Others might ask, “Is this really a viable solution?” Another might propose to launch a big anti-underage drinking campaign, showing the violent effects of it all without the personal trauma, or even stage a large, fake accident, that only appears real, but in actuality no one was hurt. Granted, it may be a little extreme, but if you sit down and think about it, it really makes sense. Only one teenager would lose their life, as opposed to countless others who might drink and drive, had this public example not been made


there...take it for what you want

Hello everyone -
i just won back money in poker
and jon grey gave me some money