The Beauty of Pain

I am thankful for:
1. Frozen water.
2. Red Lines
3. Blue Lines
4. Dekes
5. Big ol' hockey hits

Today I tried out for the Loyola University of Chicago Club Hockey Team. Things did not start out well at all. I was not playing my old school physical hockey. Once I got back to my physical play, it went better. That is not to say however that it went great. I honestly am so happy I tried out for the team. I didn't get cut, but I will not be returning to the next try-out tomorrow. I mainly wanted to go just to get back on the ice and do something which I love with all my heart. It is a passion of mine and always will be.
I have been working out quite constantly for the past few weeks. I love it. I unfortunately have not felt the pain of an intense work out. I have tried pushing myself beyond my limits...but it just was not happening for me. Hockey is a beautiful sport. It left me beat up and bruised. I love the pain. I have missed the pain. I am glad I feel pain. I am glad I can feel.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

Egalitarian Pluralism

***Starting Something New***
What is life if we don't show gratitude? I need to be more thankful for everything. From now on I will start by saying 5 random things I am grateful for.

1. Hawaii and their relaxed people.
2. The ability to Blog.
3. Kings of Leon
4. The clef symbol in music.
5. My bracelet from Tia Alba.

First Day of Church In Chicago!
This has been the highlight of my week. I cannot wait to go back to church. I love the feeling that I get while I am there. I am so happy when I go to church. I love being around people with my similar beliefs. I love being around a good environment. An environment where everything you hear does not consist of sex and drugs and getting wasted. It is a sage haven from the world. It is where I find my solace and my comfort.

Today I was reading my Sociology homework and it had to do with miscegenation which is interracial marriage. This is particularly important to me. Of this was not allowed, I would have never come to be. My fantastic Father is Caucasian. My magnificent Mother is Ecuadorian. They are different. Miscegenation allows me to be. Unfortunately the world miscegenation is still frowned upon. This makes me really, really sad. This is why I am grateful for the Hawaiian people. According to my book, they are the most open to miscegenation. They respect it. They treat all the people the same. They believe and EGALITARIAN PLURALISM!!! Hopefully this comes over to the mainlanders. Us haoles need to shape up and learn the way of the islanders.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

R R R Remix

Today has been a beautiful day, I went to sleep at around 5:00-5:30am. I woke up at 8am to my alarm, I was planning on going to breakfast but then decided against it. I went back to sleep until 9:08am when there was a knocking on my door. I had group project meeting that I had to attend. It was fantastic. After the meeting finished I went to my room. I then showered. After showering I sat at my computer and started making remixes of songs. It’s really enjoyable. After working on my remix I went down to brunch. I ate. It was divine. After brunch I went back to my room, got some homework and went over to the lounge to start doing homework. I worked for quite sometime, the lounge then started to become quite populated. Batman was put on the screen and I just had to watch. Those good ol’ animations Batman episodes are just bomb. After that I went to my room and changed and went to work out. I LOVE IT. After working out I went and showered then I went to dinner. Yummy again. I got back from dinner and decided it was time for my homework and now the good stuff starts. . .
I am sitting in the IC. Yes, it is indeed a Saturday night and I am trying to study rather then going out into the world and doing something epic. I realize the value of my education. I realize that this is the beginning of my future. I want to learn so much. I want to be able to take all the knowledge I gain and start applying it immediately. For the first time in my life I can honestly say that I have an incredible passion for learning. I absolutely love it. I am finally being challenged. I am finally realizing how much I need to sacrifice in order to succeed. Sacrifice is vital to success. An amazing man, W. W. Phelps wrote, “Sacrifice brings forth the blessings of promise.” What a simple yet powerful statement. I know I need to sacrifice. I know I need to do my part. I know that I can achieve whatever I set my mind to. I know I can accomplish each and every single thing I plan on accomplishing. I don’t aim high, I aim for the top. I know every single righteous desire of mine can and will be fulfilled through doing my part. I know that through trust and faith in the Lord I can achieve many great and marvelous things. I am so grateful for a Heavenly Father who loves and cares about my personally. I love knowing that he will love no matter what I do. I love that he wants me to get back to him. I love my family. I love my friends. I love college!
I love the Declaration of Independence. Speaking of sacrifice, WOW! These men were willing to sacrifice their lives. As they signed, they were in essence signing away their life, signing against their Government. Signing proof of treason. Signing their extermination order. I love Democracy. I love that I have a voice. I love that I can bring about change. As always though as Gandhi put it(yes, I know I use this quote a lot….but it really is that good), “you must become the change you want to see in the world.” Now I’m not talking change as in “CHANGE, YES WE CAN!” I’m talking real change. Not superficial give-the-people-what-they-wanna-hear-change. I am talking REAL change. I am talking, better schools, better educational opportunities for all. I am talking, getting rid of racism and segregation and sexism in the work place. I am talking not fighting for peace because that’s the most idiotic statement ever. In order to achieve peace you have two options. 1. (this way is preferable to the other way.) Use diplomacy to better the world. Work towards peace in an efficient DIPLOMATIC way. 2. If you do result to war, you must achieve zero hour and while there exert power and correct what needs to be corrected. Now of course, you are probably saying to yourself, “those are decent ideas sir, but how will you ever achieve that? What is your plan of action? Sorry folks, have not yet gotten that far. However, I am beginning to try and learn and realize ways that we can achieve this. Like I said before, option one is by far the best option and should be used at all costs.
As I was speaking early of homework, this is not my homework, this is my keeping you all up to date in the life of James so with my deepest apologies I must say I need to go back to my homework.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

It's the Way I Was Born!

The color of my skin. It's the way I was born. I am one half American and proud of it. I am one half Ecuadorian and proud of it. I am happy to be who I am. I am happy of the culture I have. I am happy with the color of my skin. I am happy to be me.
People think that because of the color of my skin I must be Hispanic or something of that case. They are only half right. It is an unfortunate case that when people see me they only think I am Hispanic. Looking at my brownness you don't see the whiteness in me. I guess if you want to break it down logically I do have Caucasian phenotypes as well as Hispanic phenotypes but I am unsure as to which is more dominant. Once again, I am so happy to be me. It is lovely. Power to the Zebra's!

This is REALLY short. I am ever so sorry.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

Rainy Days Got Nothin'

*Disclaimer*
This is not meant to be written properly. This is just writing. Don't hate, appreciate!
*End of Disclaimer*

There have been oh so many rainy days,
they're bringing down the spirits of everyone around.
The clouded sky, the lack of sun, this awful humid air,
is bringing doooown everyyyyyyone around.
I don't know what it is about these rainy days
but it leaves the masses oh so blue.

Why are you all stuck on this rainy day gloom?
I see the clouds and I realize I'm ON CLOUD NINE!
The joy I feel comes from the inside out.
The smile on my face puts the others in their place.
These rainy days got nothin, yeah nothing, on me today!

They're a hustlin and a bustlin to get outta the weather
They're upset cause they gotta wear a big ol' sweater.
They're coming and going as fast as can be.
Am I the only one who won't neglect the weather?
Am I the only one who won't enjoy the rain?
Will I be the solo dancer in this downpour of moisture?


Why are you all stuck on this rainy day gloom?
I see the clouds and I realize I'm ON CLOUD NINE!
The joy I feel comes from the inside out.
The smile on my face puts the others in their place.
These rainy days got nothin, yeah nothing, on me today!

anyways. haha that's really cheesy.

Today was a fantastic day. I am currently sitting in the ic overlooking lake michigan at night. it is bomb. I found out that one of my books. Give me liberty. IS THE WRONG BOOK. Beck's bookstore sold me the wrong freakin book. needless to say, i am quite angry. Oh well. What can ya do. I'm going tomorrow to work things out.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

The "Liberal" Republican

Living in Utah I was always seen as somewhat of a "liberal" Republican. I was rather open compared to my teachers and fellow classmates(speaking of course of those who were informed when it comes to speaking of politics or the likes of it)and thoroughly enjoyed playing the devil's advocate in debates and class discussions. I was seen as the one with the differing opinion and was therefore seen as a "stupid liberal." Yes, my Utah friends were very articulate and could create oh-so-painful repartee's such as "you stupid liberal." Oh, yes, I know. It cuts like a knife. It cut like a hot, sharp, serrated knife through a stick of butter. It tore my bleeding liberal apart. ;)
I live in Chicago. Chicago is extremely diverse in every sense of the word. Where I was once a liberal republican I am now seen as an extremely conservative republican.
I am seen as having differing views. I am now up against a new beast, highly informed blue bleeding "true" liberal Democrats. I am, no lie, extremely excited!
Chicago has, is, and will be giving me so many lovely opportunities. I am trying to make the best of them and hope that I can represent who and what I am and what I stand for properly and sufficiently.

Sorry so short.


I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

.Stand Up.

I didn't work out today. GRR. I am angry. Oh well!
Today I woke up, showered, and went to breakfast. WOW my pillow smells good!
After breakfast I went to my first class of the day, my writing class. I wish I had passed my AP tests with a 4, nuff said. I then came back to my room and started doing my homework. I then went to lunch. After lunch I went to my last class of the day, AMERICAN POLITICS!! That has been a class I have been waiting for my whole life! It was great. I loved it. I am so excited for my future! After class I came back to my dorm room and began to do my laundry. That took about 4 hours. It was obnoxious. While I was doing laundry I had dinner. It was good. I have been doing homework all day. There was a lapse of my studies. A video was posted on Facebook. It was titled "Stand UP."

Here it is. (since posting the video would just put a link, I have the script here)

There was a professor of philosophy who was a deeply committed atheist. His primary goal for one required class was to spend the entire semester attempting to prove that God could not exist. His students were always afraid to argue with him because of his impecable logic.

For 20 years he had taught this class and no one had ever had the courage to go against him. Sure, some had argued in class at times, but no one had ever really gone "against him". No one would go against him because he had a reputation.

At the end of every semester, on the last day, he would say to his class of 300 students, "If there's anyone here who still believes in Jesus, stand up!" In 20 years, no one had ever stood up. They knew what he was going to do next. He would say, "because anyone who does believe in God is a fool". If God existed, he could stop this piece of chalk from dropping to the ground and breaking.

Such a simple task to prove that he is God and yet he can't do it! And every year, he would drop the chalk onto the tile floor of the class room and it would shatter into a hundred pieces. All of the students could do nothing but stop and stare. Most of the students were convinced that God couldn't exist. Certainly, a number of Christians had slipped through, but for 20 years, they had been too afraid to stand up.

Well, a few years ago, there was a freshman who happened to get enrolled in the class. He was a Christian and had heard the stories about this professor. He had to take the class because it was one of the required classes for his major. And he was afraid but for 3 months that semester he prayed every morning that he would have the courage to stand up no matter what the professor said or what the class thought. Nothing they said or did could ever shatter his faith, he hoped.

Finally the day came. The professor said, "If there is anyone here who still believes in God, stand up." The professor and the class of 300 people looked at him, shocked, as he stood up at the back of classroom. The professor shouted, "You fool! If God existed he could keep this piece of chalk from breaking when it hit the ground!" He proceeded to drop the chalk, but as he did, it slipped out of his fingers, off his shirt cuff, onto the pleat of his pants, down his leg, and off his shoe. As it hit the ground, it simply rolled away unbroken. The professor's jaw dropped as he stared at the chalk. He looked up at the young man then ran out of the lecture hall.

The young man who had stood up proceeded to walk to the front of the room and share his faith in Jesus for the next half hour. 300 students stayed and listened as he testified of God's love for them and of His power through Jesus.

This story is unfortunately not true. It is false and USC has denounced that this occurred. However, it is a very moving story. I did some research and was let down when I found out that it was not a true story. But in the course of my research I did find this:

There is a related story, however, told by author Richard H. Harvey in his book 70 YEARS OF MIRACLES. It's a first-hand account of his experience in a Chemistry class at Allegheny College in Meadville, Pennsylvania in the 1920's. Harvey says the professor, a Dr. Lee, was a deist (for those of you who do not know what this is, it is a person who believes in a God who created the world but then after stop caring about the world) who annually lectured against prayer. In one of the class sessions, Dr. Lee said he was going to drop a glass flask on the floor and asked if anyone would like to pray first that the flask would not break, therefore demonstrating the reality of prayer. Richard Harvey volunteered and prayed. The professor dropped the flask and it rolled off his shoe to the floor without damage. The class cheered and the professor stopped his annual lectures against prayer.

I love happy pick me ups like this. I love the feeling you get after reading something like this. I love the feeling of wanting to do more. I love the feeling of wanting to stand a little taller. I want to be a little brighter. I want everyone to see who and what I stand for. I am proud of who and what I am. I am proud to be 1/2 Caucasian. I am proud to be 1/2 Ecuadorian. I am proud to be American. I am proud to a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. I am proud to the son of Paul & Laura Porter. I am proud to be a brother to all my siblings. I am proud to be an Uncle. I am proud to be the grandson of my Grandparents and Abuelitos. I am proud to be a son of my Heavenly Father. I love life!

Stand up, stand out, let's do some good!

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

View From Heaven

Today was my first legitimate day of College. Whoop Whoop. I feel 40k smarter already. I couldn't help but have the biggest, cheesiest, happiest smile on my face today! I'm living my dream!! I've reached a monumental goal in my life! Today was a great day!
I woke up at 6:25 and was excited, I had set my alarm for 6:52. I went back to sleep. I woke up at 7:45. I had set my alarm for 6:52...PM! haha. But no worries, I jumped out of bed and got into the shower. After showering I went down to breakfast. After breakfast I went my first college class every. Theology. I felt like Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter books. I was bustin' out with answers left and right. After theology class I went back to my dorm and hopped on the longboard and cruised over to Beck's Bookstore in order to return a book and purchase a new one. They did not have the book I needed to purchase so I cruised back to my room. I then went to my second college class every. WHOOP WHOOP! Sociology, oh my goodness. I am so stoked for this class. It will be amazing. Reading intensive? Yes. Amazing. Double yes. After that I went back to the room and had lunch with the crew. Yes, I said crew. After lunch I went to my third and final class of the day. History, it was pretty good. I love history so I should enjoy the class. After history I went to the dorm. I changed clothes and hit up the punching bag. My thumb went raw and started bleeding profusely so I threw a band-aid on it and went back to show that punching/kneeing/kicking/elbowing bag who's boss. It won;) I then went back and showered. Mmm, I love showering. I then hit up Anna to see if she wanted to go to dinner. She then asked me if I wanted to go study with her in the library. I did. She's a great friend! After studying we met up with the rest of everyone for dinner. Dinner was good. After dinner I went to my room. I then asked Ali if she wanted to study together, she said yes! We studied. I had a literal study hall. We studied in the hall. Our club of two grew into about 8. Joy. In the famous words of Bill and Ted, "Party on Dudes!"



Today I was sitting in the information commons with Anna. We were studying and doing homework. Yes, homework. I am also in shock that I was doing it. Anyways, I has a spectacular view from where I was sitting. It was superb. It reminded me of a song by Yellowcard. The song is called View From Heaven.

View From Heaven lyrics

i'm just so tired
wont you sing me to sleep
and fly through my dreams
so i can hitch a ride with you tonight
and get away from this place
have a new name and face
i just aint the same without you in my life
late night drives, all alone in my car
i can't help but start
singing lines from all our favorite songs
and melodies in the air
singin life just aint fair
sometimes i still just can't believe you're gone
and im sure the view from heaven
beats the h*ll out of mine here
and if we all believe in heaven,
maybe we'll make it through one more year
down here

feel your fire,
when its cold in my heart
and things sorta start
remindin' me of my last night with you
i only need one more day
just one more chance to say
i wish that i had gone up with you too
and i'm sure the view from heaven
beats the h*ll out of mine here
and if we all believe in heaven
maybe we'll make it through one more year
down here

you wont be comin' back
and i didn't get to say goodbye (goodbye)
i really wish i got to say goodbye
and im sure the view from heaven
beats the h*ll out of mine here
and if we all believe in heaven
maybe we'll make it through one more year
i hope that all is well in heaven
cause it's all shot to h*ll down here
i hope that i find you in heaven
cause i'm so...
lost without you down here
you wont be coming back
and i didn't get to say goodbye (goodbye)
i really wish i got to say gooooodbye



First, I love my view. I am so privileged. I sit in a cozy library and look out over the vast lake. It's beautiful.
Second, this made me start thinking of that song which in turn made me think of heaven and which in turn made me think of lost loved ones. Live everyday as if it's your last. Make every inhale and exhale of breath be worth it. You don't know when the end is going to come. You don't know when you will die. You don't know when your friends will die. You don't know when the person you've always wanted to say sorry to and never will get the chance to will die. Make life worth it. If there are wrongs in your life. Correct them. Not just you, but also me. I need to live life to the fullest. I need to make life as beautiful as possible.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

An Hour in the Future

I had a conversation with a friend yesterday. She said, what time is it out there? To which I replied, "An hour in the Future." I know, I know, sometimes I am so witty!

Today I slept in all day, that was very good. It's exactly the recovery my body needed. Exercise. We have such a love hate relationship. A day of rest was perfect. After waking up I showered. After showering I went to lunch with the friendlies. After lunch we began to look over school work and do all of that and then we started to do our resumes and references(thanks dad, mine looks quite elegant and professional)which seemed to take forever. While finishing up, we found out that the dining hall was closed. We scrambled over to go to the picnic and we got there as they were wrapping up. It was a mad dash to be able to get dinner, we succeeded. After diner, I went up to my room and spent some time studying my scriptures and such. After doing that I went to be with the friendlies. I am in the lounge on the couch, they're currently playing poker on the table. I decided now would be a perfect time to blog instead of later tonight. I am finally going to sleep early. WOOT WOOT!


"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude from achieving his goal; nothing on earth can help the man with the wrong mental attitude."
-Thomas Jefferson

I have the firm belief that attitude is everything. Attitude is where it all starts. Motivation comes from attitude. If you have a good attitude towards what life is throwing at you, you are seemingly invincible. This does not mean, in any way shape of form, that you will not have your fair share of diversity, your fair share of trails or your fair share of anything. Because you will, no matter what. That's how life is. When you have the right attitude and the right mind set, you can achieve anything. What if when Thomas Edison failed... he quit? When he faced adversary he just called it quits? Let the Thomas Edison in you shine.


I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

A New Page In my, in-progress, Novel Called "LIFE."

A new page in my life. The start of something new. The fresh beginnings. What does this all really mean? It's easy and convenient to say that since I'm in college, I'm starting something new. I'm starting the rest of my life. I'm starting my future. Everything is about the future. Not the present. Not the past.
Why do we forget the past? Why can't we live in the present? I think of the past. I think of the times with the family back home staying up way too late talking about absolutely nothing but at the same time talking about everything. Those are the moments in life I want to cherish and never forget. I want those to fill my future. The present, what a wonderful time in my life. I'll leave it at that.
My future. Why do I need to worry so much about that. If I get too caught up in the future, isn't it possible that I will neglect my future and forget my past? I don't want that to happen. I want to live in the moment, I want to be able to notice all the small things. I want to be content with the "now." I was sent an email that had something that impacted me profoundly, I hope it has the same effect on you as it had on me.





..something to think about...







Washington, DC Metro Station on a cold January morning in 2007. The

man with a violin played six Bach pieces for about 45 minutes. During

that time approx. 2 thousand people went through the station, most of

them on their way to work. After 3 minutes a middle aged man noticed

there was a musician playing. He slowed his pace and stopped for a few

seconds and then hurried to meet his schedule.

4 minutes later:

the violinist received his first dollar: a woman threw the money in

the hat and, without stopping, continued to walk.





6 minutes:

A young man leaned against the wall to listen to him, then looked at

his watch and started to walk again.



10 minutes:

A 3-year old boy stopped but his mother tugged him along hurriedly.

The kid stopped to look at the violinist again, but the mother pushed

hard and the child continued to walk, turning his head all the time.

This action was repeated by several other children. Every parent,

without exception, forced their children to move on quickly.



45 minutes:

The musician played continuously. Only 6 people stopped and listened

for a short while. About 20 gave money but continued to walk at their

normal pace. The man collected a total of $32.



1 hour:

He finished playing and silence took over. No one noticed. No one applauded, nor was there any recognition.

No one knew this, but the violinist was Joshua Bell, one of the

greatest musicians in the world. He played one of the most intricate

pieces ever written, with a violin worth $3.5 million dollars. Two

days before Joshua Bell sold out a theater in Boston where the seats

averaged $100.



This is a true story. Joshua Bell playing incognito in the metro

station was organized by the Washington Post as part of a social

experiment about perception, taste and people's priorities. The

questions raised: in a common place environment at an inappropriate

hour, do we perceive beauty? Do we stop to appreciate it? Do we

recognize talent in an unexpected context?



One possible conclusion reached from this experiment could be this: If

we do not have a moment to stop and listen to one of the best

musicians in the world, playing some of the finest music ever written,

with one of the most beautiful instruments ever made.....



How many other things are we missing?



How much are we missing? What are we missing? Live in the small stuff, live in the moment. Notice everything. Appreciate all. Love all.

I love you all, goodbye.
Mi amor a todos, adios. (correct me?)
אני אוהב אותך כל, סלאמאת.

The Lummox

(convocation)

Today I woke up around 12:20 and called the parental unit. After speaking with the parental unit I threw on my gym clothing and went to the gym. I began working out and it was quite epic. I found me a punching bag today and began to beat the crap out of it. It was quite enjoyable. I then realized that I had a meeting at 1:30 which I was late for. I took a quick shower and went to the meeting. It was boring.
After that I had freshman convocation. That was pretty epic... I then went to try and purchase my books. Failure, it was closed. We then ate dinner. Delicious. I think got the brilliant idea of throwing a party for Ali. Anna and I went to CVS and got the required stuff for the party. We blew up balloons and threw a party. It was quite epic. It is now 3:52, Anna (this be Anna and James with his customary "I look like living death face")

and I have been talking since a little past 10:00. I love college. I love the discussions that come out. I love the opportunities. I love the late night calls to Mom and Dad to ask about that one religious meeting a long time ago with all the catholic people...Yup it was the meeting of Constantinople.
Today, I decided I've found my first lummox on Loyola Campus. The first person that I don't see myself getting along with. I do not think we'll be friends. I would like to be eventually upon getting to know said person further...but as of right now, I cannot stand them. There have been people who have been over-the-top and such, but nobody has made me as ornery as this person. I can't explain it, maybe it's the "natural man" in me making itself prominent. It doesn't feel regular I just honestly don't feel like we will ever become friends. Unfortunately, at times, I am one to judge quickly. There are many flaws with this. First and foremost, I judge. Judging is not for me to do. It is not my place. I should not do it, but however sad I am about it, I do it nonetheless. Another flaw: not only do I judge, I judge quite quickly. I don't give people the chance before I judge. I have feelings on people and tend to stick with them. If I don't like someone on my first impression, or I judge them on my first impression, it is really rare for that opinion to change. There have been a few exceptions when I have changed that opinion, although, those are extremely rare. The Lummox is me. Not the person I met today. I am the Lummox because of my fault in error. Because of my quick judgment I am the Lummox.

A Jog to the Pier

Today was my first day that I was scheduled out the entire day. Welcome Week has officially commenced. This morning I woke up at around eleven o'clock. It was quite glorious being able to sleep in and not have to worry about being anywhere super early. I'll take advantage of these days seeing as before I know it they'll be gone. I woke up and went down to lunch with my roommate Langston. The lunch here isn't all that bad--(pardon the two hyphens, it doesn't automatically put in the dash I am accustomed to) we'll see how long my stance on the food stands. While I was at breakfast I received a text message from my new friend Ali. I waited in the cafeteria for her. After we finished eating we went up my room for me to grab my longboard. We then went to the mail room and walked slash longboarded around campus. We went to the beach and walked out on one of the piers. We sat and talked for quite a while. It was really fun! We got thirsty so we went back to our dorms and I took a nap. After napping I decided to work out, I walked over to the Halas Sports Center and much to my dismay they closed early so that they set up for Loyola-opoly. I decided to go on a run around campus. I started jogging and then after a while started jogging on the beach. I saw a pier in the distance that looked pretty cool, I jogged over and then down the pier. Once I got there, I turned and looked back towards the center of Campus. My words will not suffice. Rather then letting my words paint a picture in your head, I'll just show you the picture I took!

Looking at these pictures still just doesn't cut it. The view was spectacular.

TANGENT
hung out with the girls. joy.
It's Ali's birthday! We got her some brownies! Double Joy. She is 19 years old today. Doubleplusgood! I am so young. It's ever so epic. Yup, James is bustin' out with third person and doublespeak all in one. Look what a high school education did for me!
TANGENT OVER

The beauty around the world never ceases to amaze me. There is beauty everywhere. There is beauty in everything. Everyone has beauty in them to start off with. I think we are all born with the duty to bring out the beauty in others. (If that makes any sense.) With a little love, miracles happen. I'm reminded of the story of the young man in high school who was carrying all the contents from his locker him and dropped something, a boy walked up, picked up some of the stuff and they walked home together. The second boy later found out that because of that small act of kindness a life was saved. The young man that was walking with all the locker contents was planning on committing suicide that day. The small act of kindness made all the difference. That little act of love, that little display of love made all the difference. Let's all spread the love. Show that we care. Show the kindness. Love is in the air. Make it happen.

Dance Party!

Today I woke up around 6:45 and hopped into the shower. I went down to breakfast around 7:30 and had a quick bite. I had to be down at the "bubble" (which is a horrible nickname for the bottom floor of Simpson Hall) for a boat tour. We took the L into the city and walked for a little bit and got on a boat. I went was on the river and we looked at all the history in Chicago. It was kinda boring to be completely honest, I would've preferred being on the street and just looking at the stuff from there...But you can't get everything you want...;)I saw Sears tower, they have a really cool new addition, they have these glass enclosures that jut out the side of the building. You look down and beneath you all you see is the street. I REALLY want to go there. That would honestly be beyond epic beyond belief. After the boat tour we went to a little hole in the wall Thai place. It was quite delightful. I'd say what I had, but I honestly don't know the name of it. After dinner I went to some diversity stuff. Pretty cool.

Today it rained again. Three of the four days that I have been here have been tainted by rain. I say tainted only because I have been craving a crazy day to go skate or something of that sort.

Tonight there was a music part/dance party. It was enjoyable. There were 2 dances floors and a couple of live bands.

I unfortunately did not have any deep thoughts or anything of that sort today that I remember. So, since I want to write on something I've looked up some quotes and plan on writing on how I feel after reading them.

Michel Legrand said, "The more I live, the more I learn. The more I learn, the more I realize, the less I know."

This is so true. The more knowledge you gain the more you realize the how little you actually know. The way I think of it, when you're in kindergarten your world is really small. It consists of home and school. As you grow and develop and expand your knowledge you realize that the world consists of much more than the little home environment which you grew up believe to be the world. As you further grow and such, you begin to ponder on how there is much more than just our world. You realize that space in indeed endless and realize how small you are in the overall scheme of things.
In a sense were small but in another sense we're not small at all. One person can make all the difference. But at the same time. One person vs the vastness of the University seems somewhat small.
Tangent time. I love eyes. I love the eyes that give you the feeling that the person is looking into the deepest abyss of your soul. The can read you like a book. They can go from page to page and learn and understand you. The eyes that, even though they can read you and seemingly understand and know everything about you and delve into your secretest of thoughts and your emotions, don't judge you. The caring eyes. The eyes that are full of love. I love those eyes.
Untangent time. I love the fact that life is confusing. The more I know let's me realize the less I know.

Downtown

Today consisted of going to orientation meetings in the morning after breakfast(which I skipped) and then lunch. After I came up to my dorm and relaxed momentarily. I got to go downtown today. WOW. Downtown we went to two museums and a couple of parks. Absolutely incredible. Here are my thoughts.

As you walk downtown you can't help but notice the beauty. It truly is an incredible place. How is that such a busy place can be so serene? Chicago really is full of some epic art. It's everywhere. The buildings. The parks. The people...

Homeless and Beggars, the typical thought is, I'm not gonna give them money because they're gonna go buy drugs, or, they deserve this. Where's the compassion? I honestly hate seeing it, I feel so helpless, I want to help...but I don't know how. I saw a man, holding his son by the hand he said to me, "please help us get something to eat." For all of you who have seen "Pursuit of Happyness" you know that bad stuff happens to good people. Who am I to judge and say that it's his fault he's in the predicament facing him? This needs to be changed. How is it that one of the wealthiest Government's in the world. An international superpower can let this be like this? How can so many go without homes? How can so many go without food? It hurts the heart. Bad things happen to good people.

Bad things happen to good people. I know this is a true statement. Is the opposite true as well? Good things happen to bad people? How is it that life is so ridiculous. I loathe seeing when bad stuff happens to people who don't deserve it at all. The people who deserve nothing but blessings. The ones who deserve nothing but happiness because they are the epitome of good. Then there's the people who care about nobody but themselves. Those people that are self-righteous and narcissistic. Why is it that it seems that they are the ones who tend to get all the breaks? "Life's not fair." If I had a dollar for every time I heard that line, I'd be ridiculously rich. That would be quite a lucrative privilege...What can we do about this? Gandhi taught, "you must become the change you want to see in the world." I take this a step farther. We must become the change we want to see. I must become the change I want to see. It all starts with me. It is my responsibility to "get the ball rolling."

I went to a a yellow room today. It was, no lie, nothing but yellow, it brought out the blemishes in your skin and saturated your sight with yellow. It was almost as if your eyes had been impregnated with a special yellow lens. It can be compared to editing a photo and turning all colors down except for yellow. WOW, I absolutely loved going in there. It made me think of judgment. It made everything that was unimportant go dull and in the background, my shoes, my clothing, my jewelry, all that faded into the background. All that was left was..ME. Heavenly Father won't judge us by our status in our earthly life. He won't judge us by how much money we made. He won't judge us by the car we drove. He won't judge us by the clothing we wore. He will judge us righteously because he is perfect. He will judge us according to what we've done. He will justly judge us by out attitude. He will judge us by the service we've rendered. He will judge us by our actions.

The Candle Burns At Both Ends...

The candle is a burning at both ends. Like a car crash my emotions collide. Smacking against one another. Exploding like a firework. Am I unstable? No. Am I lost? Am I confused? Maybe a little bit. But life is life and we must learn to deal. We must "roll with the punches." It is innate human nature to feel as I do. I am neither the first nor will I be the last. We are not alone. You are not alone. I am not alone. We feel the pain of the world. We feel the weight pressing down. The burden is heavy but there is relief. There is comfort. There is peace. All is possible through God. When we subject ourselves to the Lord, he will mold us and shape us into so much more than we can do or be by ourselves. It would be a blatant lie to say that it would be an easy road, that life would be an easy pass. That's simply not true. But from our trials we can grow. We can--as a singular being--become a better person, it all depends on our attitude(s). If whenever something comes along we are negative and don't turn towards God, we will deal with the seemingly unbearable seemingly alone. If--on the other hand--when trials present themselves, we try to see how we can grow from it and rely on God, we WILL grow. I have learned this from personal experience. It's cowardly and easy to ask, why me? What did I do to deserve this? Take the high road, we reap what you deserve when we do this. It really is truly incredible. It will no doubt blow you away as you see how invigorated you will feel. God works in mysterious ways, you won't realize it, but once you put your trust in him(not only in your times of need)your life will be blessed beyond your deepest imaginations.

Awakenings

The awakenings to life I experience tend to be in the strangest of places. I am sitting here after getting my university ID. I am against a small piece of brick wall on the inside of the building and I am contemplating. What am I doing? I've left. I've gone. Is this the right choice? I feel completely okay about the choice that has been made. I know that it is right. If everyone says that separation makes the heart grow fonder...or stronger? Not entirely sure which. BUT, that's neither here nor there. If the separation is supposedly for the better, why does it have to hurt so much? I mean, honestly, I'm okay. But the pain of seeing those who love and care about me cry that is nearly unbearable. It's like a punch to the gut that is all consuming and repetitive. But I guess this pain is all for the good? I am glad I am here. I am where I belong. I know it to be true. I know it as a fact. I know. But it makes me sad to see pain. Awakenings. The waking of the perception to the feelings of those around. Awakenings. The awakening of the realities of the future. Awakenings. The awakening of the past finally being the past. This is my awakening.

Hotel Room

I am sitting in my hotel room. It's 12:49. I'm supposed to be reading a book. A remarkable book titled Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson and David Oliver Relin. I really do recommend this book. It leaves me sitting on this not-so-comfortable-piece-of-crap-sofa-convert-to-a-bed couch thinking about my life. What have I accomplished? What am I going to accomplish? Will I amount to greatness? Will my life ever have the ability to be converted to a novel and become a New York Time Bestseller? I really do wonder. What are the next few years of my life going to bring? Has my past amounted to anything? I've been on Earth for 17, almost 18 years. Have I done anything? Could I die tonight in this overused-broken hotel 'bed' and have accomplished enough to have a meaningful eulogy written for me? I'm not trying to be sad or depressing or anything here, to be completely honest, I am extremely happy with my life. Things couldn't be better. Reality. Check. Is that what this is? Or am I just setting myself straight? Not letting the happiness surpass the truth? That's bound to be what this is, a reality check. Time is such a novel concept. I've spent 30 minutes of my precious night (up till this very moment) writing this. I think I have finally procrastinated enough and now I am fully prepared to once again jump into this book and allow the dictating of my thoughts filling my brain with the life and learning's of another man. I get the opportunity to learn what he learned. Experience what he experienced. I unlike him, get to do it all comfortably and from the confines of this couch-turn-bed.