photoxpressions 07 - blue period

As winter crept into the valley of Whispering Pines, it has swept away the color and left us with shades of whites & blues. We've seen two snowstorms, one day without power, and numerous little dusting's of snow since Thanksgiving. I've also had the pleasure of experiencing freezing fog, something of an oddity, which lives here in the valley during winter mornings and livens up my morning commutes to the office.
Rae says that the valley reminds her of Narnia under the White Witch's rule. I am reminiscence of Picasso during his "Blue Period", which has inspired these pictures and this post. All pic's shot with "cyanotype color setting" on the trusty Nikon.

UN

In yesterday's Washington Post, Secretary General, Kofi Annan detailed his 5 lessons learned through his experience with the United Nations. Below is an excerpt dealing with what I feel is the most important lesson:

"How can states hold each other to account? Only through multilateral institutions. So my final lesson is that those institutions must be organized in a fair and democratic way, giving the poor and the weak some influence over the actions of the rich and the strong.

Developing countries should have a stronger voice in international financial institutions, whose decisions can mean life or death for their people. New permanent or long-term members should be added to the U.N. Security Council, whose current membership reflects the reality of 1945, not of today.

No less important, all the Security Council's members must accept the responsibility that comes with their privilege. The council is not a stage for acting out national interests. It is the management committee of our fledgling global security system.

More than ever, Americans, like the rest of humanity, need a functioning global system. Experience has shown, time and again, that the system works poorly when the United States remains aloof but it functions much better when there is farsighted U.S. leadership.

That gives American leaders of today and tomorrow a great responsibility. The American people must see that they live up to it."

This is just another, of the numerous, global observations of the United States global "war/blunder on Terror". I'm trying very hard to not be anti-administration but, each day my frustration level rises with the mire our military is stuck in both Iraq & Afghanistan. Our global spread of "democrazy" gives me flashbacks of President Johnson in the late 1960's dealing with the Vietnam conflict.

Read the entire article here.

gangsta amish

Just a quick post of a very funny video that my sister tipped me off to while she was out visiting Whispering Pines.

photoxpressions 06 - fatherhood

Daily it sinks in, the magnitude of responsibility that has been endowed upon Rae & I with this new gift. As I hold my child in my two hands, totally dependent on her parents, I am able to gain a small glimpse through Christ's eyes, to mankind's true relationship with God. It also amazes me that, at two in the morning, I can feel such extreme emotions; fatigue, love, frustration, anxiety - all at the same time as I try to quiet and console my daughter.

photoxpressions 05 - WA living

Greetings from Whispering Pines. Just a lazy Sunday afternoon here as I look out at the intermittent rain showers rolling in from the north. I was planning to go hiking this afternoon but 35-40 mph wind gusts and a temperature of 37 degrees kept me inside. Yeah, I'm a pansy like that. Instead, I decided to browse through some pictures from our first 3 months here in Washington, which is what prompted this post. The first 2 pictures are from Manastash Ridge a few weeks ago. The blue sky with the cool clouds is from our weekend trip to Spokane, WA earlier this month. The fence post pic is from an unnamed trail, on the opposing, north side of the Kittitas valley. Second to last is a shot of the original Starbuck's in Seattle at Pike Place Market. And lastly is the pooch, Lance, lazily sunning in our living room here at Whispering Pines.
Have a good week. If you have a second check this out, a great concert that Rae & I have been absorbing this past week.

justice

From the book of Micah, Chapter 6, Verse 8: He has told you, O man, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God? [from the ESV version of The Bible].

This was a reminder that drop-kicked me in service yesterday. That regardless of how daunting and frustrating it can be to see so much pain & hurt in this world, we as Christian's must continue to seek out and do justice (even in areas that our government blatantly overlooks). We must do this in a kind & merciful way; and we must continue to walk humbly. Something we Americans are lacking in......after all the Manifest Destiny we've gorged ourselves on.

invisible children

This weekend was the 2nd annual Ellensburg Film Festival. I only caught one film, "Invisible Children", which I've been wanting to see for quite a while.
The story is told from the view point of 3 high school guys who, after graduating, decide to leave the comforts of America and travel to Sudan, Africa. They go in search of adventure and the hopes of capturing it all on film.
On arriving in Sudan, they find a virtual wasteland devoid of excitement and humankind. The boy's continue to search for an exciting story and when they begin to think to only "cool" thing they have on tape is the killing of a "gigantic snake", they go on a trip to Gulu, Uganda.
In Gulu, they met the children of the Acholi tribe who have grown up in the 17 year war which, still has no visible endpoint. The rebels who are trying to overthrow the government, The Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), drive into the refugee camps at night and abduct the children, ages 8-12, to bolster their troop ranks. You may ask why those ages of children. The answer is coldly logical and sadistic: #1, these children can be easily terrorized into fighting with an indoctrination of beatings and murder of their fellow kids. #2, children that age are big enough to carry automatic rifles and machetes to continue the murder and rape which plagues Uganda & Sudan.
Each night the children of Gulu make a "night commute" from their villages & refugee camps to the surrounding hospitals and town centers to sleep in relative safety. In these sites the children are not at as much of a risk of being abducted by the LRA. This war has been going on for 17+ years with minimal outcry and no media coverage in the United States. In the film one local priest states "If a bomb goes off in Israel the whole world knows about it. If children are killed & abducted in Africa it does not even make the news in America." The priest was referencing a killing of 40+ children who were studying to be priests at his school in Uganda.
The story this movie tells sickens and saddens me; it saddens me that here is another example of tragedy in Africa which it getting minimal outcry in the world and it sickens me that again our country wants little to do with aiding and stopping these crimes against humanity!! (read this) WHY? Because it's happening yet again in "black Africa"? (see posts: speak up and truth in humor)
At the end of the movie the filmmakers ask the viewers for 3 things: Talent, Time, Money, in that order. So, I ask you to take the time to sign the "Children Should Never Be Soldiers Declaration" and send a message to President Bush and your representing member of Congress. Please send a one time gift to the Children of War Center or sponsor the Gulu Community both of which are in Gulu, Uganda and in need of your money. Then, read more about the conflict and use your talent to spread awareness and help end this tragedy. Please help.

moving pictures - 02

"Water" is a somber and interesting movie set in the late 1930's, in India, with Gandhi's rise to power set as the backdrop. Water tells the story of a 8 year old girl who is now a widow and must live a life of poverty apart from normal society according to Hindu law. Go here for the trailer.

"The Fog of War" gives an insider look at Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara during the Vietnam War. This is well worth 90 minutes of your time. McNamara's wit is still sharp at 83 years of age with a great amount of wisdom to pass on. President Bush and his hawks (Rumsfeld & Cheney especially) would do well to heed the "11 lessons" Mr. McNamara has for us in this film.

moving pictures - 01

This is the beggining of a new line of posts regarding cinema.

Tonight, Rae and I saw "Little Miss Sunshine"; which I highly recommend.
A few of the previews looked quite intersting as well so I'll pass the links on to the void:

- "Catch A Fire"

- "The Last King Of Scotland"

crickey - r.i.p.

Say it ain't so. I just learned tonight that the "croc hunter" died today from a stingray barb through the heart. Go here for more coverage.

This doesn't have a great impact on my world but I thought Steve-o would never die. This guy was a tough as leather, hard as alligator skin, and quick as a cobra (which, I saw him jump around with in the African safari).

More later.

dead cow = relaxation

As I write this blatantly materialistic post I am sitting on, what I would consider, the most comfortable couch in existence. Yesterday, we purchased our first grown-up (non-Ikea) piece of furniture. A leather La-Z-boy couch/dual recliner which is feature in the pictures below:


























When you slide into the reclining position, you're immediately surrounded by the musky leather scent which declares "this is a FREAKIN' MAN'S SOFA"!! The smooth chocolate leather cradles you in as you drift of on what will be many Sunday afternoon naps.

More meaningful posts coming soon. But for now too.....sleepy...to...type....on.

photoxpressions 04 - mt. rainier nat. park

Just some pic's from our past two excursions to Mt. Rainier National Park. Rae & I were recently tipped off, that, during August the snow-line on the mountain recedes back enough for the alpine meadows to have a glorious burst of color as the wildflower's bloom in late Summer. The snow melt also creates the lightest blue ponds in the recesses of the valley's which reflect Mt. Rainier majestically.


The next item is an attempt at trick videography which I may have failed miserably at. This was a small trickle next to a waterfall that I thought would appear to flow across the screen if recorded sideways......not sure if I captured it but I figured I'd at least see what others thought of it:

rfk

Just been ruminating more lately about RFK. He was as articulate as his brother in his speeches; yet, his experiences connected him to humanity in a way that I don't believe his brother was. Robert Kennedy was more of a man of the people than I think his brother was. Robert's experiences with tragedy broke through the affluent upper crust mold which shaped both brothers from a young age. He became the champion of the downtrodden, oppressed, persecuted, and unrepresented. And then was taken away from them on the summit of what would of likely been his winning campaign for presidency. "Tragic" seems like such a trite, little word to describe the changes that could of came to fruition with the vision and energy of Robert Kennedy in the position of The President of the United States.

For an example of his wordmanship, if that even is a word, read the famous quote from his 06.06.1966 speech in Capetown, S. Africa (which also adorns his memorial next to his brother in Arlington Cemetery):

"Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance."

OR this quote from the speech given the night of MLK's assassination in Indianapolis, Indiana quoting the Greek poet Aeschylus:

"In our sleep, pain which cannot forget falls drop by drop upon the heart until, in our own despair, against our will, comes wisdom through the awful grace of God."

AND I'll leave you with this exerpt from the same speech in S. Africa, that seems so fitting for our current international state of affairs:

"In a few hours, the plane that brought me to this country crossed over oceans and countries which have been a crucible of human history. In minutes we traced migrations of men over thousands of years; seconds, the briefest glimpse, and we passed battlefields on which millions of men once struggled and died. We could see no national boundaries, no vast gulfs or high walls dividing people from people; only nature and the works of man -- homes and factories and farms -- everywhere reflecting man's common effort to enrich his life. Everywhere new technology and communications brings men and nations closer together, the concerns of one inevitably become the concerns of all. And our new closeness is stripping away the false masks, the illusion of differences which is at the root of injustice and hate and war. Only earthbound man still clings to the dark and poisoning superstition that his world is bounded by the nearest hill, his universe ends at river's shore, his common humanity is enclosed in the tight circle of those who share his town or his views and the color of his skin.

It is your job, the task of the young people in this world, to strip the last remnants of that ancient, cruel belief from the civilization of man."

apologies

Just a quick post regarding apologetics, a topic which has been on my mind for a few months.

As I stare at the empty blog space I don't think I can frame my thoughts at this time. I will have to just transplant my random thoughts for now with a link to a great sermon entitled "Let's Go Fishing" from 08.06.2006. I would highly encourage you to listen to this.

I'll try to edit this post in the future. Work is going well but taking quite a bit of my time.

If you have Netflix or a Public library with a good DVD selection check out this film. Quite an eye-opener on what a tragic loss his assassination was!

reminder

lyrics from the song "Fight For Your Mind" from the same titled album, words from the mind of Ben Harper.

" if you're gonna live
then live it up
and if you're gonna give
then give it up
if you're gonna walk the earth
then walk it proud
and if you're gonna say the word
you got to say it loud

you got to fight for your mind
you got to fight for your mind
while you got the time
you got to fight for your mind

if you're gonna build a house
make it a home
if you're gonna pull some weight
pull your own
if you're gonna help
reach out your hand
if you're getting up
then take a stand

you got to fight for your mind
you got to fight for your mind
while you got the time
you got to fight for your mind

if you're gonna step
step on in
if you're gonna finish
you got to begin
don't you fear
what you don't know
just let that be
your room to grow

you got to fight for your mind
you got to fight for your mind
while you got the time
you got to fight for your mind"


'nuff said.

hypnotic

Just a quick post. There are two YouTube videos that I keep going back to watch in the past few weeks.

The first is a Honda commercial which my brother turned me onto, which I have never seen aired. According to Micah it was all done in one shot and took something like $200,000 to film and 14 days (I probably just really butchered his quote):


The Second is a short video done by someone/something called Animusic. I didn't really research it on the internet about who they are but this is quite a cool musical video, very Pixar-esque:

Also, is anyone having trouble viewing the video I embedded in the "whispering pines" post. I made it a private video on YouTube and that may have caused some problems. Please let me know if you can't see it. Thanks.

photoxpressions 03

I figure if my back is still sore then I have just cause to make other's suffer through a few more pic's from the move. Now I promise to move on to other topics.

whispering pines

Hey all; the migration is complete. We arrived in Ellensburg, Washington this past Sunday late in the evening, on what we would later find out was the hottest day in recorded history for the town. My air conditioning stopped working in Colorado since my truck didn’t want to pull a U-Haul trailer and power the A/C, so I drove the last three days of the trip in relative misery. To break up the monotony of the trek I tried to keep a log of pretty much anything I could think of. Below is my portion of the log.

Trip Totals:
Days: 6
Miles: 3300.4
Tolls: $53 (that's just PA, OH, & IN....rotten scoundrels)
Driving Hours: 60.5
Gallons of Gasoline: 258
Roads Traveled: 76→80→280→680→81→135→61→70→25→90
Coffees: 7
Dr. Peppers: 9
Bags of Sunflower Seeds: 3

Playlist:
Alexi Murdoch
Belle & Sebastian
Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals
Beta Band
Blind Melon
Bob Dylan
Cake
Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
Counting Crows
Credence Clearwater Revival
Crosby, Stills, Nash, & Young
David Gray
DJ Dangermouse
Faith No More
Fiona Apple
Gillian Welch
Jack Johnson
Johnny Cash
Josh Garrels
Josh Rouse
Kasey Chambers
Kathleen Edwards
Led Zeppelin
Lucinda Williams
Marvin Gaye
Modest Mouse
Neko Case
Nirvana
Over The Rhine
Queensryche
Radiohead
Redbird
Shelby Lynne
Soul Asylum
Soul Sides Compilation 1
Sufjan Stevens
Talking Heads
The Allman Brothers Band
The Band
The Beatles
The Boy Least Likely To
The Shins
Toots & the Maytals
Violent Femmes
WILCO
Willie Nelson
Zero 7

Scientific Discovery Moment: Rachel initiated research in Wyoming revealing that it takes approximately five minutes for a Lemonhead to dissolve in your mouth without any excessive sucking on the Lemonhead.

Further research to support the hypothesized “five minute law” will explore if multiple Lemonheads in your mouth will change the dissolve time and if every mouth is consistent with a universal five minute law will be completed on future road trips.

Trip Claps & Slaps: (my cheesy section to doll out rants and thanks)

Claps:

- Ultimate clap to The Lord for providing us with save travel, no speeding tickets, and some of the most amazing country to drive through.
- Supreme Clap to the unnamed tow-truck driver/mechanic in Belleville, Kansas who towed my truck (with the trailer attached) to the Chevy dealership and then started working away on trying to fix it….on a blissful 113 degree day in Kansas!!

Slaps:

- A Slap to the fuel pump which caused the above mentioned breakdown on that 113 degree day.
- Another general all encompassing Slap (with a flying elbow) to the heat wave which plagued us the entire week we were traveling.

Overall the trip was an exciting adventure which let us see some extremely beautiful country:

And also play with electronics while I should of been driving:
Back at Whispering Pines we have been very busy the past week with unpacking, assembling Ikea furniture, and settling to our new home in the Pacific Northwest. Our house is surrounded by tall pine trees which whisper as the wind sails in from the Cascade Mountains, hence the new name of our house. The breeze also fills the house with the scent of evergreen trees and makes me feel like I’m camping in the mountains. I found out last week that I passed the national certification for Physician Assistants which was a huge relief. I start work on 7.31 and a new chapter in my “adult” life. Tonight Rachel and I are going to enjoy the latest movie by M. Night Shyamalan, Lady In The Water. This weekend is also “Jazz in the Valley” so we may explore the town more and possibly catch a concert. Enjoy your own weekend. More to come soon.

goodbye PHL

Tonight, I sit on the eve of a trans-continental trip from Philadelphia to Washington state. I've recently completed my training as a Physician Assistant and am moving to start my new job as a fledgling PA.
I write this with excitement, apprehension, and sadness all bundled tight in my gut. Tomorrow is the beginning which I have been working towards for the past four years. During that time I have grown fond of my in-law's and bonded with new, now seasoned, friends, both of which will be missed greatly.
I've also learned the pathways and uncovered the "diamonds" of Philadelphia during my downtown excursions. So, I dedicate this post to AKA Music, WXPN, WHYY, Big Jar Books, Chink's Steaks (great cheese steaks, however un-PC the name is), Rita's Water Ice, Philadelphia Pretzel Factory, Pod, El Vez, Fork, Reading Terminal, The Mutter Museum, Philadelphia Art Museum, Tin Angel, The Electric Factory, World Cafe Live, and The Kimmel Center. I leave with philos in my heart!

world cup woes

Just wanted to document my world cup withdrawl and post the final minutes of Zidane's career. Quite a disappointing way to close this chapter of his legacy. If the story is true though, Materazzi most likely deserved this little "love tap".

happy 4th

celebrate freedom & liberty.

old charter

Celebrate with our friends the Brit's and some Old Charter. They're good blokes and not at all miffed that we won our independence from the crown they're still under. With Old Charter bygones are bygones......

i love ESPN

Just a quick note on how much I love ESPN. For those of us left in the world without cable TV we can still catch live streaming coverage of the world cup games via ESPN360 online. Wish I had knew of this earlier in the tournament! At least I'll be able to see the two semi-final games without the crappy ABC commentary.

I was bummed to see England lose today to Portugal. I really wanted to witness Crouch doing his post-goal dance . The Portugal keeper, Ricardo, seemed to be clairvoyant during the penalty kicks blocking 3 of the 4 pk's.

Back to online coverage of Brazil v. France. I remember watching these two teams play in the 1998 World Cup final onboard the USS Wasp during my last Mediterranean Deployment in the U.S. Navy. The deployment was during the summer of '98 and all of Europe was intent on the World Cup in France during our tour. It was quite an experience to see just how much football/soccer is a global sport. Too bad the majority of U.S. seems to close-minded to embrace soccer and support the national team on a higher level. Well, back to the game....thanks to ESPN!!

Author's Note: France upsets Brazil 1-0!! Sorry, Timmy but your countrymen didn't look like they had the legs that the French did. Zidane put on quite a show with his amazing footwork. Also, is it me or does the French keeper, Fabien Barthez, look like Moby?

photoxpressions 02 (aka Timmy goes to Hershey)

My friend Timmy makes his debut here tonight. Pic's taken at Hershey Park in PA.

photoxpressions 01