The Metamorphosis

"But that's the whole root of the evil.  Words.  Each of us has, inside him, a world of things, to everyone, his world of things. And how can we understand each other, sir, if, in the words I speak, I put the sense and value of things as they are inside me, whereas the man who hears them inevitably receives them in the sense and with the value they have for him, the sense and value of the world inside him?"  Six Characters in Search of an Author by Luigi Pirandello

Well everyone, Thanksgiving break starts Wednesday and I plan on being back in my hometown that very day.  It's hard to express my joy.  I shall be less of a Stranger in proximity, yet perhaps more in my manner.  I look forward to hearing your reflections on the ways I have subtly shifted.  I miss my friends.

In response to popular demand I am going to post MORE PICTURES.  So, here you go.  I was going to upload a video, until it didn't work.

These were taken at my birthday party, held at my sister's new place.  First photo features Joe Cheatwood and Amy Kucks, the second photo is of course Bek and Meg, the third photo has Katie Roberts on the left and Abigail Maricle on the right, and the last photo has Amy and John Adams (I call him Grr).  Had plenty of fun at said event.

This will have to tide everyone over until I return on Wednesday, I'm off to write a paper!

Dt

Oranges

"He went to the study, lay down, and once again was left alone with It. Face to face with It, unable to do anything with It.  Simply look at It and grow numb with horror."  The Death of Ivan Ilyich

Ello chums.  The Stranger has again made a rare appearance on the web, although not so rare as Sonic. *cough*  I have enjoyed a break this weekend and have been sleeping and resting my poor study addled brain.  The days have been sunny and peaceful.  There really isn't too much to report from the South but I'll try to make it interesting.

So far my midterms have returned good grades, one example; Physics = A+.  I wait on bated breath for most of the others.  I'm thoroughly glad my midterms are over, they were the most difficult two weeks I've had scholastically in some time but the arduousness has so far paid off - by the Grace of God!  My coming weeks are less busy but have greater potential evils as I'll be reaping what I sowed in grades.  Let it be that I sowed adequately!

Other news, other news...  Oh right, Guy Fawkes' night is coming soon.  In two days I'll achieve the double deuce.  Yeah yeah, we're getting rather advanced in age folks.  XD

Rebekah moved, her new place is nice.  Meg is not crawling she's "scooting".  I'm not sure if we can dice those terms so finely but I'm not going to contradict the mother majority.  She scoots fast and it's rather cute.

I saw Where the Wild Things Are in theater on Sunday.  I am a Wild Thing.  As if you didn't already know, hehe.  Anywho, I GREATLY enjoyed the movie.  So much so that I could barely contain myself within the seat while the drama was being played out.  Afterward I was skipping about with great energy and joy.  That movie so well depicted one of the core facets of my personality that I was astounded and delighted to find I was not alone in this Wild mode of life.  *Howls*

That's about it for now folks.


Dt

PS

I have an orange on my desk. 

An installment

Hey everybody. My left hand is injured from a football game so I have to keep this update short or else. Things are going pretty well right now, besides my gympy left hand. I think I did really well on my bio and freedom's midterms, my freedom's paper is written (just needs proofing and revision), and the weekend was exactly what I needed. Now all I have to do is finish the paper, study for my western literature exam (minimal time), study for my timed physics midterm (more time), and study for my Latin III midterm (most time). Pray for me! This week is intense but after it the school year winds down till finals.

Peace!

Dt

Hammer and Anvil (see; Sword)

"Raskolnikov went into the passage and pulled the bell. The same bell, the same cracked note. He rang it a second and a third time; he listened and remembered. The hideous and agonizingly fearful sensation he had felt then began to come back more and more vividly. He shuddered at every ring and it gave him more and more satisfaction." Crime and Punishment


Hello everyone. The time is 5:41 in the AM and here I sit to update my friends. This morning I was awoken at 3:50 by the Spirit of God, telling me to get in some quality time before beginning my day. Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, Holy, Holy, is He.

There is quite a bit to update everyone on, this campus is very fast paced and politically dramatic. It's hard for an undiplomatic person like myself to find much sympathy here but this fact is slowly changing. I've come to an epiphany one that I've had before as a realization only... but this time it seems strong and deep and real. I need to change. My very character needs to change.

It's hard for a strongly set individual like myself to fully accept this fact (which is why it has taken a couple years for me to surrender). So. I have found that the very people I want to help mend and bring to the Truth with love I often hurt with my ungentle (although true) observations and comments. This tendency points back to my formative years when my few friends were extremely troubled individuals who really needed to be kept grounded in reality. There is nothing wrong with being concerned and wanting to help but there are some things wrong with the way in which I proceed with it. My peers are not kids so I can't just correct them like I did those young versions of my friends in the past, they need to be respected. For this, and some other reasons that I'll keep to myself for now, I have been heavily convicted. God's solution, submit my very soul in humility to Him knowing full well that He is the only one capable of changing this hard set personality of mine. How far will He go? I'm not sure, and it's a little scary. But... I can promise you that He will only make me more like He wanted me to be from the beginning, I will be even more myself after than I am now. Now to less serious news.




This video is of Jeremy Siblrud's birthday bash (we called him the birthday beast). It was really, really fun. We played empire and some twisted version of musical chairs wherein the players sit on various couches with one in the center. This person in the center sets a condition, if you have ever done or been this condition then you must stand and find a seat somewhere else lest you be stuck yourself in the middle. Some of the best conditions, "Whoever would like to be abducted by the person you like." Jeremy; "Whoever has been in someone else's dream before." Me; "Whoever liked the the other things on the merry go round better than the horses." Amy. Glad I went, a good time had by all.




Making apple cider at the custodial party. It was yummy. Also, my mortal enemy attended (who also happens to be my supervisor) Derek. We watched Flushed Away (that's not rice!). Quite a few people attended, and I had a good time gallivanting around.

I also attended a Fusion Dance last night. I was originally not intending to go for various reasons (some of them pretty good reasons) but when it got close to beginning several friends of mine were quite surprised to find that I wasn't going. Their genuine advise made me reconsider my position. I had fun, although I was mad that the beat was harder to distinguish in the modern music. I say that classic ballroom dance should have music after the style it was intended to be in. But I did get to practice waltzing, a lot. Which is good. I also apparently made Ashley's night. I only danced once with her but one of her friends had some upsetting news of some sort or another and she had needed the pick me up. If this was the whole reason for me to have gone, then it was worth every minute I could have been reading Crime and Punishment.

Lest you think that it's all play and no work down here at the college, think again. We just dedicated the Barbara Hodel Center and opened it totally to the students to peruse (and to clean). It's huge. It has seven bathrooms two of which are also locker rooms. Instead of doing homework I worked for custodial for around twenty hours last week, more than half of which were on Friday and Saturday. It was worth it. We have a coffee house. I got to meet a lot of the parents and siblings. The highlight of the week, hearing Mrs. Hodel try to speak to us. She's a quadriplegic because two years ago she fell down the stairs and broke her spine. Dr. Farris decided that it would be a good idea to name the building after her because her faith was astronomical. Her voice was broken and she was emotional and she sounded like someone with down syndrome. I think every student wept inside. She set a fire burning in us, that building is a lightning rod now, and a generator besides. Every day I walk past it I am going to remember all the giving and all the symbolism behind it, and it is going to steel (as in harden!) my resolve.

Oh, and there was homecoming. But I never got to attend anything because I was cleaning. But I'm not bitter about it, after all there is always next year. This coming week I have a buffer, a breath. Before the BIG plunge of the last two weeks of October when everything happens at once. I like to say that my Midterms aren't really midterms. It's funny, only the freshman actually have midterms during midterms. The rest of us, well, we're special. ^__^

I now have to go read for Western Literature II. Until later!

Dt

PS

I want an update too!

I Arise

"Unable to endure the aspect of the being I had created, I rushed out of the room, and continued a long time traversing my bed-chamber, unable to compose my mind to sleep." --Frankenstein

Greetings my friends. Time passes fast here on campus, I trust time will pass like a blitzing tunnel and the moment we see one another again be closer than it now seems. I took my first exam of the year on Thursday in Latin III, I think it went well but we shall see if I am a lover of opinion or knowledge when the grade is returned. I am slated to do a Physics exam this coming week as well at least it's take home.

This was taken at The Awakening. The event was originally advertised to me as an all day worship event, as you may very well suspect my excitement was quite high. When I arrived and heard the first band began to play I realized something, this was a Christian carnival not a worship event. My initial response was dismay but eventually I decided that there was a place for such activities, by any means let them come to the Truth. The gospel was preached by Disciple in a very clear and passionate way and I am thankful.

I had a headache there several times during the day, that atmosphere was difficult to discern with its mixture of ardor and apathy. Much to my delight I found the prayer tent, plopped down, and prayed for a long while for friends and family, and my headache. In the middle of praying for my headache to disperse I fell headlong into a nap. Yes, I know, spirit = willing, body = weak. And yet, when I awoke I was well rested and my head hurt no longer. Hallelujah.

I attended a Freshman Appreciation Swing dance. I danced every single dance save 3 and almost every dance was with someone I hadn't danced with before. I'll quote some comments made about my "skills". Jeff Weinmeister, "I saw you dancin' and I said, 'Dang that kid can cut a rug!'", Dan Levesque, "I think that your reputation as being just crazy is changed a little bit, you're still crazy but you do it in skillful ways." Bart Gingerich, "You're a brute when you dance. I'm bruter than you but still, you're a brute." Tanner Lovette, "I didn't expect any of the freshman to know how to dance, and you danced really well."

You may have noticed I didn't include female comments on my dancing skills. I can summarize them all in a single sentence. 'Thank you for the dance, you dance well, I had fun.' In the end a good time was had by most. (excluding those who must not be named, the ones who spurned the swing)





Here's a video of our victory tunnel after our girls won a game 5-1, and that's with many injured players. In fact, we have so many injured athletes that Dr. Farris said, "We could have an All American crutch fleet." Yeah, thanks.

There's not too much else to report. I have made a good friend in "someone like Laedelas", she even has an elfin name. With this friendship I have begun building my PHC family, as I do wherever I go. Dt the Christian mob boss. If any of you visit I'll make sure to introduce you to the new sister, Abbi. No brothers besides those I already had previous, Brian and Jacob. I think that perhaps my cube-mate Jeremy could fit that bill, he doesn't mind "the crazies" and he goes to fight club... We shall see! With that I leave you to attend to dinner, pax dei vobiscum.

Dt

Shock of all Shocks!

Greetings all from Virginia! I, the Stranger, have found a place where there are few(er) ways in which I stick out! O_O It's rather odd (and on account of its oddness more correct)! I've only been down here a few weeks but I already have labels here are a few (for some kicks), Social Butterfly, Energizer Bunny, Absolutely Insane (footnote, but still loved), and the Man with No Shame. All of these nicknames come to my unending delight which only further aggravate the desires of the other students to SO name me. My sister wasn't kidding when she said that the College wouldn't know what hit them when I arrived, mwaha.



Despite the rigorous student honor code, statement of faith, and other various beliefs and regulations all students must conform to there are a LOT of differences among the believers here. There has been a "major" upset in the student government on account of a highly controversial act of the Student President. Jeff, our President, spoke at our first chapel. He said some VERY moving words... the only thing is he ALSO used an expletive as a Rhetorical device (an extremely effective one) to prove a point. Well, incredibly long story short Dr. Walker, the President of the College, has removed Jeff's powers as Student President but not his title. Neither of those actions are (technically) within Dr. Walker's authority to do. In a nut shell, it has turned into what just about every somewhat controversial affair can turn into in a highly political and intellectually charged area. It has turned into a political war between (most) of the students and Dr. Walker. Just today an underground journal "The Eggplant" was dropped in the dinning hall which satirically lambasted Dr. Walker (along with other issues) to the laughter of the students. My question, why does it have to be so potentially divisive? The general sage answer, because the College is what it is, Christian, political, and a beacon. Who is in the right? No one is entirely sure, all everyone knows is that both Jeff and Dr. Walker want desperately to do what is right.

This is after a guys soccer game against some school (we lost). Apparently we still have school spirit, *ra ra shish boom ba*
Lake Bob and one of the weeping willows that I like to sit near.
The SEAL.

The sky down here in VA is just... so gorgeous. I rarely want to go inside around sunset, much to the amusement of just about any passing student. They watch me quizzically as I make strange noises like "nenne! MMmmm! Bu- Sun! AH! Class bu- *grumble*"

All is more than less well, devotions are like gold, fellowship silver, and just about every moment becomes cherished in one way or another. I only hope that what seems difficult but possible now doesn't change to flailing later, but I shall hope in God for I will again praise Him. Rejoice my friends! I feel like Anne of Green Gables, this whole college is more or less like my kindred spirit and the presence of God is strong with me. What can man (or homework) do to me?

Dt

PS.

SHOCK OF ALL SHOCKS! I posted!

Happy Trails

And smile upon a friend. My former boss, Tony (great man of God), once drew a half of an oval on a piece of paper. He said, "Can you finish this figure for me?" I drew the other half of the oval. He said, "Ah but you forgot this." And he drew the tail of the fish. "Christians meet paths and share joy, and then they continue on. That's the meaning of the fish." I was pretty touched by the sentiment, and still remember that figure when saying goodbye even today (this was.... four years ago I think).

I go to college in Virginia. And I cherish these memories and relationships, these friends and family... these stalwart brothers. I wish to say, clearly, loudly, strongly this simple fact. I love you all, I love you all very much. Keep safe, be strong, watch over one another, be kind to one another, show the love of Christ in all things, and spur one another on in love to be united with Christ. I pray that in my absence all of you would grow and find peace, joy, and strength in your times of need. Happy trails, to you, until we meet again. For meet again we shall, either here or beyond gates more celestial.

Dt