He will always reach out.

I have had a fairly dramatic slump in my attitude over the last several days or more. It has certainly felt quite a bit odd as it is a fairly uncommon thing for me to have something like this last as long as it has. I have not even had a feeling it would be turning up anytime soon so you can imagine my surprise when it all got quite turned around today.

Nothing dramatic in how it turned around, though, as it was simply a good dose of testimony, a feeling of the spirit, and the pleasantries of awesome friends that really did the trick. I suppose my heart must have finally come to the point that it would be more receptive to this kind of positivity because I really was not expecting it at all.

And I am blessed to recognize the source from whence these wonderful blessings stem... and I am thankful.

Hiking in the mountains.

Even small mountains are magnificent places to go. The effort one spends, the nature one sees, the peace one can feel are all excellent examples of the good that can come from hiking in the mountains. I am certain there are few things more majestic in life.

Today I got to go hiking with some of my lengthiest friends. They helped me to realize a little bit better my place in the world. I have been forgetting my value a bit lately and the reminder was really quite valuable... even more so because of the timing.

Music is love.

Because it defies almost any encompassing description in much the same way love does. Perhaps they actually are the same thing, simply manifest in different forms, and they truly can have the same effect on a person. Maybe I just like thinking about things that I don't really understand... which probably explains why I think about women all the time. Ha.

No good thinking.

I have had a decent day by most standards but I have certainly been fighting the mental/emotional war of loneliness and depression for the last few or so hours. I am not sure if it is something chemical or what but I seriously feel like I am being punished for my idiocy as of late and this seems to be a very effective form of punishment.

Not to be a 'negative norman' or anything... just expressing the reality of life. Everybody has their down days, even me. I probably refrain from expressing them in my blog writing more than they actually occur, so perhaps my ratio of good to bad days seems kind of skewed, but I do try to be as honest as possible in my writing... and today honesty is kicking me in the face.

Anyway, I look forward to sleep for more reasons than I normally do tonight. Mostly I look forward to escaping myself as soon as possible.

This whole gay marriage thing.

Before I make any introspective statements on this topic I feel inclined to be very clear about my own stance on this topic. I am against gay marriage equality. I believe in accordance with what my faith deems to be the truth. I believe in accordance with what my personal logic deems to be the truth as well.

This is a very hot topic as of late and it is something I think has had a far more polarizing effect on the people I am regularly exposed to than I would have expected. And it seems that very few people actually sit on the fence about this... or maybe the fence sitters are so totally silent I am just not detecting their feelings on the topic one way or another.

I personally do not feel that I need to defend my stance on this topic. I could argue for or against it at length, with most people who are interested in doing so, but I really do not see how that would help anything. Admittedly my arguments are fairly simple but they do not need to be complex to be important or meaningful.

I have nothing but love for people who consider themselves to fall under the LGBT categories in one way or another. The challenges they face are far beyond anything I would ever be willing to undertake intentionally. I will gladly befriend and support them in everything unrelated to acting out in the behaviors related to those sexuality and gender-based self-identifications. I see them as an equal in their human role as my brothers and sisters and they deserve as much respect from me as every other person on the planet.

So, in short, get loving them as much as you love everyone else... something I will continue to do... which means I will never support gay marriage.

More long days.

Work and recording and school and more work and home. And I suppose this is how my Tuesdays will go this term. Not that I will always fit recording into the mix but it probably wouldn't hurt to do with some regularity.

In many ways I think this will increase my productivity. I can also fit some extra homework and freelance work in as well. And, maybe once in a while(possibly more often than I am willing to admit), I will get some disc golfing in as well.

Yep, this should be a good term.

Eccentric teachers are fun.

Even if they are a bit out in left field. I think they make the learning experience memorable and that is always a good thing.

My classes this term look to be good ones and my schedule looks quite conducive to me creating some fairly high quality work. I still haven't been to my third class yet but I know the teacher and the topic and it is definitely one I will enjoy to the utmost. The next ten weeks should be quite fun.

Plus, as if school wasn't pleasant enough, the weather was quite a pleasure to behold today. All kinds of sunny with a good dose of the picturesque clouds that I always enjoy. Nice!