Life is really good right now! I can't place my fingure on one thing in particular, but there are a lot of small factors that make my life great right now. I'm looking forward to what this week has in store. I've been making some plans to see Jekyll and Hyde this weekend, go to Colorado for a week and a half (yes, I'm skipping a week of class, gasp), and continuing to plan for the Euro trip with friends this summer. My dad and I finalized plans today for him to reserve a Piper for him to fly up to Colorado Springs this next month (helps that he is president of the flying club at his company).  It will be great to see my sister's family and hit the slopes.

Peace and love for now!

Whats the difference...

between stupidity and ignorance? Have you ever considered this question? I hear the word "stupid" a lot more often in a description of a person than a word such as "ignorant." Is it just because the word ignorant is old school? This week is called Heritage on campus. Over 100 "smart" kids from all over the US and abroad come to LeTourneau to compete for 5 scholarships that total over $300,000. What makes them so "smart"? I am guessing it all relates to something Dr. Roller said in class today. He said "it is ok to be ignorant because that is curable, but stupidity is a lifetime situation." I think there is a lot of truth in that statement. It could be as simple as these "smart" kids have determined to cure their ignorance. I like the quote that says "stupidity should be painful." That's the deepest thoughts I could have at this time of night with how tired I am.

Home on the Range ...

This past Sunday was my dad's birthday. He called me Wednesday night and requested no birthday present besides me to come home for part of the weekend. I forget how much my home town humors me (mind you it holds a special place in my heart). You won't meet nicer southern people no matter where you look. The ladies there can cook like no other and I don't think low cal, carb, sodium, or anything else with the word low before it is in their vocabulary. On the way home I stopped at the Brookshire’s in Emory (only about 10 mins from my house). Note: we finally got a main line grocery store last year after the town of 2,000 petitioned for it. All we had before that was the Family Food Mart (soon to go out of business I'm sure). Back to walking into Brookshire’s ... as I came through the front door I quickly remember that I was overdressed. I was not overdressed because I had on jeans or because my untucked shirt was too formal, but because my jeans weren't tucked in my boots (not that I was wearing boots); my shirt wasn't white or denim, stained, or even torn; I didn't have a beat up cowboy hat on; and I actually was wearing a belt. Even as small as a town as Longview may be you just don't get the country feel of women shopping in their curlers and men tracking in fresh cow manure on the bottoms of their Wolverines. There are actually stock trailer parking spots in the lot.

When I drove down our driveway my dad was just finishing up feeding the cows. (Note: my dad works a corporate job and wears suits Mon-Fri, but on the weekends you will be hard pressed to get him out of overalls except for church). I noticed several new calves out in the pasture, so I went ahead and drove my truck straight through the open gate so I could see them. To be honest I think it was more of an excuse to get my truck out in a muddy cow pasture so I could wear off some of the city feel. It had never been off the concrete to speak of. One of the calves wasn't nursing its mama and it was critical to get some nourishment into its system. So we made an emergency trip to the only open feed store open within a 30 mile radius before it closed, which happened to be only a mile down the road. The calf took the bottle with the milk replacer like it was second nature. Usually it is a fight to get a calf to take a bottle for the first time - I should know because I have bottle fed my fair share of calves growing up. The calf perked right up after guzzling the bottle. I didn't end of making it inside the house till about dark. I realized later that evening that the two hours between arriving home and entering the house were the first completely "free" hours I have had in a long time. Not for one minute did I think about school, work, LSM, SIFE, future plans, or any other responsibility. It was a great feeling!!

This past weekend I got to drive my Chevelle while I was home. I think I am going to bring it back to campus this semester around the April time frame. I have promised lots of people rides. I can't wait to take some of my friends home with me this semester. I bring very few friends home with me. I guess that is because a person gets to see a whole different side of my personality when I’m out on our small ranch in my workboots. It seems like I expect a person to earn an invitation to see that side of me. So I guess the moral here is that no matter how much you liked or disliked the place where you grew up, it holds a piece of your heart, a certain familiarity that gives you a sense of peace. For me that place of peace is the ranch I grew up on in a little East Texas town. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Currently Playing Chariot Stripped (Bonus CD) By Gavin DeGraw see related

Change is good ...

...with a new look comes a new post. It seems forever since I have posted ... oh wait, it has been forever. Christmas came and went as well as the end of the semester, New Years, the best concert ever (Gaven DeGraw), and the beginning of the last semester of my senior year (slightly excited about that).

     I have hit this semester with a hard core attitude. I think some of my friends are having a hard time understanding how busy I truly am. I am taking 16 hours (Strategic is a big part of that), working pretty darn close to full-time (I"m over the telecounseling dept. and we have preview weekends like mad this semester), I'm President of the LU SIFE Team this year (competition is coming up in April), and treasurer for LSM (spring break missions are approaching really fast). So I stretched myself a little thin this semester, but I really am loving pretty close to every min. of what I am involved in. I have somewhat of a rutine that has been working pretty well for me. I have developed some awesome friendships this semester and look forward to building those and keeping them after college.

     So Strategic ... it pretty much rules my life this semester. We have a kick arce team! Think Clay, Dan F., and me in my room this last Monday for 5 hrs. straight going over strategies and figures. I played with finacial percentages for an hour straight just last night. I admit we are slightly anal, but we made our first decision tonight and submitted it - you could feel the tension and adrenaline in the room when Clay hit the mouse button. A person could easily tell all three of us love our major and take it pretty seriously. Tuesday is D-Day when we get back all our company and industry reports. We have a decision due for each of the next 7 classes.

     We had a guest speaker for the Business Dept. chapel who is the Senior VP or Citizens National Bank. He talked about the experiences and oportunities that God has given him in his business career. He was headed for a career in ministry when he received some strong advice to pursue a business career and the opportunities it would afford him to be able to be a testimony for Christ. He said it has opened up more doors than a career in ministry ever would have. A lot of what he said hit close to home and confirmed a lot of my thinking. I want to be an influence for Christ, but have never felt a burden for entering the field of ministry. God has given me business talent and I truly believe I am fulfilling His will for me by pursueing a career in my field of interest wherever that may lead me. Several members of the SIFE team including myself were able to talk to Mr. Carroll after chapel and he is going to join the board of directors for the SIFE team and possibly even speak at a future event. I am looking forward to meeting with him in the future.

So ... before I make this a book I think I should cut it off. More to come later about the Gaven DeGraw concert, Christmas break, New Year's Resolutions, and maybe a few stories from home. Peace out!