The big day.

Weddings are just that... BIG. They are full of emotion, people, food, excitement, fun, and everything else that would add into it's bigness. It's a good ol' time for many of the people involved but always a challenge for the people running the show... which is usually the bride and her mother... and/or a few other mothers and bridesmaids... maybe a groom-related person or two.

I always think they are fun no matter how much responsibility I end up with(whether as a photographer, groomsmen, or basic guest.) It is always nice to really unwind at the end of the day, though, and tonight I expect nothing different. I am really going to rock the bedtime tonight!

The woes of man.

My buddy is, like most of my dude friends(myself included, and probably many of my friend girls), one of the most relationship challenged people. In some ways it is comforting to know that I am not the only one with an immensity of confusion concerning the opposite sex... but I definitely feel for the guy. It is seriously so hard to figure this part of life out! Ha.

Birthday time of the Summer!

I do not recall a more birthday filled time of the year than the last week or so. It is gobs of fun and quite a good way to fill the Summertime. Yee haw!

Getting things in order.

I have lot's of organizing and cleaning on the horizon and as much as a nuisance as it is I am still looking forward to it. Some of it is just getting rid of old junk out of my storage stuff. Some of it is school and homework related stuff. Some of it is basically just life stuff. And most of it feels like it already has a little momentum going for it so that really helps.

Anyway... it will feel really good to get a bunch of things off my back... and shoulders... and head... and face(or wherever I've been keeping that stuff!)

Pieces of the future work.

I really enjoy working on my own. Today was especially nice because I got to work around a giant crop of interesting people and things. I was allowed to compose and capture pretty much anything I wanted to. I am not sure how the footage looks yet but I think it should be pretty fun to put something together that might even be of a decent quality, too.

Ramping up for the weekend.

It has been a splendid Friday but it should be an equally, if not more, splendid Saturday. I have enjoyed a good deal of social interaction, mixed with a little of the important work, and tomorrow looks to be an even bigger dose of both. All kinds of groovy, I'd say.

The old sports are still loads of fun.

I don't really remember the last time I got to play softball but it felt just as awesome to play as I remember it. I don't think the bicycle analogy really fits, since my hitting was pretty awful today, but there is definitely something to it anyway. It is especially nice when the weather is pretty much perfect like it was tonight.

Summertime cruisin'.

Things are so pleasant and relaxing lately. The weather has been ridiculous, the attitudes have been following that trend, the work has been easy, the times are definitely good. So good, I think this somewhat short entry feels just fine anyway. Ha.

In need of more work.

Which may sound kind of strange since I am certainly not really lacking in the "things I can be doing" sort of category... but I am somewhat lacking in the financial stability category and I think finding a second job is probably in my best interest.

Sometimes I have a need for financial tightening, so to speak, which teaches me to be much more frugal and aware of my income and outgo. So I guess I should be a little more grateful for the challenge right now... even if it means less cool things... which don't really mean anything anyway. Ha.

Preparing for the future.

I am quite aware that my future is definitely a mystery... but I would like to think I have at least some control over what sorts of things will be happening from time to time. This is the reason we have desires, we make plans, we act on those plans, and hopefully accomplish some things along the way. But I am certainly aware that plans are meant to change as need might dictate and also that it might be the way it always has to happen. I probably just turn my eye the other way when things don't really go the way I expected, even if it's better than I hoped, and I guess that's just human nature.

Or maybe it's just easy to forget all the things we think we are so passionate about.

Possible career change before a career has even started.

I might have the opportunity to become employed working in the IT field for a healthcare company soon. The pay and benefits are way beyond anything I could expect early on in my chosen career path as a "creative" in the digital media production world. It is kind of a scary proposition to think about running a totally different route but, at the same time, it is an exciting prospect to possibly get something like an actual career going in such a short period of time. I don't really know if I have the qualifications to get this thing going or not but things seem quite promising. Updates to follow, I suppose!

Certain fun.

It is a necessary thing when the tip becomes folded down into a needful facility. Not the craziest thing ever but useful and needed, nonetheless.

Summer in full effect.

It kinda felt like the epitome of a true Summer day today. I worked, I washed my car, I played an outdoor sport, then played some indoor games and watched some television. The only thing today lacked, in order for it to be more Summer-like would probably have been the presence of watermelon. Ha.

Solid pain.

Working hard at something is certainly the best way to do it if working soft doesn't seem to produce any results... which is usually most of the time. I generally apply myself in this way to just about everything even though it often creates a lot of stress on my body and mind in the process. I sometimes wonder if the stress is strengthening me or just breaking me down even more... I suppose it might depend on what is being affected at the time. My back? My ego? My consistency? There's all kinds of things it can apply to.

Thinking of the disparaging possibilities.

It is not much fun to think of being alone for the imminent and foreseeable future. The ideas cross my mind from time to time(luckily not all too often) and they can certainly seem to beckon the little rain cloud my direction. I must be way too picky, or way less attractive than I thought, or way too difficult to understand, or way too intense, or way too nice, or way too weird, or way too open/honest, or way too fast/slow, or way too inexperienced, or way too old, or way too difficult to read, or way too (insert anything I haven't mentioned that you already know I am way too much of) to figure this relationship kind of thing out, anymore. I suppose I shouldn't really apologize for just being me... but I would be lying if I said I wasn't trying to change and become a better person already anyway.

I am sure this sounds very "whoah is me" to even bring the topic up. I don't think it is, actually. I enjoy analyzing myself on these topics and writing things out in this way helps me to gain a perspective of myself that I really could not get in any other way. I know I am a fairly self-critical guy but it is just the way I operate. No sense trying to be somebody else!(other than the best version of me, or course)

Overcast, muggy days are weird.

It may have been one of the warmest days I can remember considering the total lack of direct sunlight. And it was super humid on top of that... what a crummy combo!

Anyway, I made the best of it. It was a good day in pretty much every respect. I enjoyed my work, school, and service immensely. I did a lot of thinking about things as I drove to and fro and probably could be writing something more significant and valuable at the moment... but I guess it'll have to wait. I suppose this isn't always an entirely bad thing anyway.

A beautifully stress-free Monday.

I am quite glad to be done with my online class. It didn't exactly consume all of my time but it certainly loomed over me like a cloud most of the time. It was just one of those things that I think doesn't really work for me like a regular class does. I guess it was a good learning experience, as it helped me to learn a little self-discipline in the process, but I am not exactly happy about that. Ha.

I suppose I should be much more grateful about it all. Maybe this would be considered a first-world problem? Ha.

Reminders of our learning.

I think the forgetful human nature is often one of the greatest challenges in life. I often have such great moments of clarity, nearly crushing the frailties of human nature completely, only to find that when I lose sight of that focus the human nature finds its way back into my life. But, to add to the challenge of human forgetfulness, I think there is sometimes a tendency to let go of those moments of clarity on purpose. Perhaps it is sometimes on a more subconscious level but I am sure that is not always the case. Giving away the responsibility of truth often seems like the easier, more desirable, thing to do. Oh, what a lie that is!

Thus... I am quite grateful for a frequently repeating Sabbath day experience! I need every reminder I can ever get of all the things I have learned over the years despite their relative simplicity... for the Gospel is not really a very complicated thing... it is just hard to do it right.

A much needed trip to the lake.

Or maybe it was just a much needed trip of relaxation and non-school stress. In any case I am quite glad for it and quite glad to get to sleep in tomorrow morning. It is gonna feel that good for sure. So good that I don't mind this entry being so short. Ha.

Sleepwalking.

I sometimes go through the day so under-rested that it just becomes a big blur. I know a decent amount of good, productive things happened but the positive feeling of accomplishment gets a little stifled as well.

The weather was nice. I am glad for a comfortable car to nap in when I need it.

Actually gettin' it done.

It did take considerable mental effort to complete my homework but complete it I did. I am not expecting it to be of a particularly high caliber but I think it turned out okay. And now, as I consider the next assignment's challenge, it feels slightly more doable... as if I might actually tackle it tomorrow to take advantage of the momentum I have accrued today. I guess time will tell whether or not I actually follow through with this idea.

Man, I am a prolific procrastinator!

I have had some of my online homework due for several days and I just keep finding useful ways to put it off(well... semi-useful, at least). I know how good I will feel to have it all done but I just keep squeezing myself further and further into the corner and I don't really know why. I even enjoy the content of the homework! It just seems ultra-silly to me. Nuts!

Talking about the real things.

It is nice to have a conversation with good friends about the important things in life. It is even nicer to do it in the spectacularly beautiful surroundings of the Space Needle. It was not particularly heavy or in depth or life altering... but it was solid and well-timed and motivational. I am quite thankful for such opportunities in life.

Old friends.

It is always a fun experience to revisit the older memories of life when a good, old friend makes an appearance. They have such a different perspective of you which can tend to be somewhat instructive and revelational. Reminders of where you have come from can help you to see the progress you have made in life. Somehow, it makes them seem like a living journal entry, each in their own way. And it brings a certain, distinct sort of peace that I am not sure I experience in other ways. A fun, enjoyable experience for sure!

Cool times are back.

The weather has finally calmed down. I am quite happy to be able to keep my strength all to myself for once. It made for a fun, activity-filled day. This might be one of the best features of Washington, combined with the outdoorsyness and whatnot. Oh, so sweet!

Party with the people.

I think I really need to be injecting myself into as many new social situations as possible... frequently. It did not seem to produce any visible results but still felt like a wise, important thing to do toward the progress of my life into the future... hopefully not as an eternal bachelor. Ha.

Getting back on a track.

Might not be the track but any track seems good right now. Plus, the detour could be beneficial. Who knows?

I feel like things were productive today. I was a little zapped on energy but still motivated to tidy things up anyway. It was all pretty basic stuff but do enough of that and things begin to add up in your favor. It has a nice cumulative effect, I find.

Tomorrow is a holiday of national significance. A big, super birthday celebration, I suppose. Should be good and fun. And there might not even be a more appropriate time for one of my favorite catch phrases of late... BOOM!

Slow recovery.

I have felt somewhat better today and for that I am quite thankful. I also took a good portion of my time to work on art for one of my homework assignments and have somewhat revitalized my interest in actually doing art more often. I found it to be quite therapeutic in many ways.

The rest of the day was spent in the general paths of life and I suppose there is not much else to say about things. I would like to be more entertaining but I suppose the illness I am experiencing is somewhat to blame.(scapegoat?) Ha.

The humbling illness.

It took me a while to figure it out, but about halfway through the day, after I was sweating and uncomfortable non-stop for hours, I decided to check my temperature and discovered that I was running a fever. GREAT. So, it was like a million degrees outside AND a million degrees inside... my body... yeah.

Anyway, all this crumbly wumbly has put me in a somewhat sedate mood. In many ways I don't think I am thinking very clearly about things(girls, work, school stuff). I think the lack of clarity might be putting me in a more understanding, more needy, less demanding sort of attitude when it comes to that kind of stuff right now. My caring has just kind of slipped away a bit and I just wanna heal up and get back to normal.

I don't know if I'll be going into work tomorrow... but I know I don't want to right now. I HATE calling in sick... but if I am actually sick I guess it could be the right thing to do.