I just realized that instead of brief digressions, I could've called these segments detours. And then it would go with the whole "on the road" theme. And then I would seem more clever. But alas, 'tis too late. I suppose I'll have to stick to using words like alas and 'tis to make myself feel smart.
So why was CS Lewis right, you may ask. Well he said this (and I'll paraphrase)
"Christianity is a statement that, if true, is of infinite importance and if not true, is of no importance. The one thing it cannot be is moderately important."
I thought about that the other day and I think its kinda like if someone were to say to me "Austin, theres a bomb in the refrigerator that's going to explode in 2 minutes." If what this person said was true, its definitely pretty important to me--my life is on the line. If it's not, then his words are irrelevant to me. Either way I do know two things:
1) His statement is definitely not of medium importance. It's either true or not. I'm either 2 minutes away from dying or I'm safe.
2) I know I'm not going to keep on eating pancakes or doing whatever I'm doing without at least investigating (i.e. taking a peek in the refrigerator).
This metaphor is probably a stretch but you can see where I'm trying to go with this...
Jesus said some pretty radical, crazy things. He said he was God. He said believing in him leads to eternal life. He even had the audacity to claim to be the one and only way. The nerve, right? But either all this stuff is true, and infinitely (literally) important, or he was a liar or a lunatic and should be completely ignored.
When I say I'm a Christian, what I mean is that I just simply fall into the category of people who find all that crazy stuff Jesus said to be true, and thus infinitely important. And so I hope my life reflects that.
Kinda like the "there's a bomb we gotta go" line is one that's worth attention, Jesus's words and life, no matter what your beliefs, are at the very least worth some attention/investigation. Sure it'll be harder than looking into a refrigerator, but the search for truth is worth the journey.
Friday, 4 March 2011
Tuesday, 22 February 2011
A day in the life of "the machine"
9:00--wake up
9:15--wake up
9:30--seriously, wake up
Marcel, another cleaner that sleeps above me, is my alarm clock. He's very patient.
9:40--make decision to eat breakfast or shower
Current score: Food 15 Hygiene 0
9:45--eat breakfast
It's either pancakes, french toast or fried egg and toast. Pancake day is obviously my favorite. On fried egg days I usually get granola and yogurt. Something about eating the yolk of an egg weirds me out.
10:00--shift starts
It's either clean the small downstairs bathroom, tidy up outside, or sweep and mop the stairs. There's 3 cleaners so we each get one task. I guess I prefer outside but all are relatively easy.
10:30--Short Bible discussion
Led by the day's CS (cleaner supervisor). I like this time of our day. We chat and drink hot chocolate. It's fun and usually entertaining and not super serious... true of the CS's as well.
11:00--time to work
Spend the next 2 1/2 hours making beds, cleaning sinks and mirros, vacuuming and mopping. Or if you're on bathroom duty (every cleaner gets a 10-day bathroom stint) you do that the whole time. Neither job is particulary hard. I think prefer bathrooms.
13:30--lunch time
We eat unlimited toasted sandwiches and leftover breakfast and leftover dinner from the night before. I've gained the nickname "the machine" and I'm proud.
14:15ish--finish up working
Either vacuum and mop the reception area by yourself or tag team the cafe with another cleaner. Pretty easy.
14:45ish--spend the next 4 hours doing some kind of combination of the following:
The food is great! Tonight was sweet and sour chicken and rice with banana-chocolate cake and pudding for dessert. Yum.
18:50ish--eat another portion of dinner
19:30--spend next 6 hours doing some kind of combination of the aforementioned activities
1:30ish--go upstairs
I always stay up pretty late, The 18-bed room I sleep in often has weird smells and loud snorers. So its either beat the snorers to bed or go to bed when I'm so tired I'll fall asleep nevermind the smells or noises.
1:35--make decision whether to sleep or shower, seeing as though I didn't shower in the morning.
Current score: Sleep 8 Hygiene 7
Yes, that means there are days I dont shower. Judge me, I not ashamed. I don't think I'm the only one who takes less showers in the winter.
2:00--Fall asleep (hopefully)
4:00--Dream of watching Sportscenter or going back to Cuba or eating chick-fil-a or being one of the 15,000 in Coleman Coliseum or Ashley Jackson...
9:00--repeat
9:15--wake up
9:30--seriously, wake up
Marcel, another cleaner that sleeps above me, is my alarm clock. He's very patient.
9:40--make decision to eat breakfast or shower
Current score: Food 15 Hygiene 0
9:45--eat breakfast
It's either pancakes, french toast or fried egg and toast. Pancake day is obviously my favorite. On fried egg days I usually get granola and yogurt. Something about eating the yolk of an egg weirds me out.
10:00--shift starts
It's either clean the small downstairs bathroom, tidy up outside, or sweep and mop the stairs. There's 3 cleaners so we each get one task. I guess I prefer outside but all are relatively easy.
10:30--Short Bible discussion
Led by the day's CS (cleaner supervisor). I like this time of our day. We chat and drink hot chocolate. It's fun and usually entertaining and not super serious... true of the CS's as well.
11:00--time to work
Spend the next 2 1/2 hours making beds, cleaning sinks and mirros, vacuuming and mopping. Or if you're on bathroom duty (every cleaner gets a 10-day bathroom stint) you do that the whole time. Neither job is particulary hard. I think prefer bathrooms.
13:30--lunch time
We eat unlimited toasted sandwiches and leftover breakfast and leftover dinner from the night before. I've gained the nickname "the machine" and I'm proud.
14:15ish--finish up working
Either vacuum and mop the reception area by yourself or tag team the cafe with another cleaner. Pretty easy.
14:45ish--spend the next 4 hours doing some kind of combination of the following:
- napping
- playing chess
- hanging out with staff
- playing football (the kind you play with your feet)
- snacking
- meeting and talking to guests
- walking/biking around town
- surfing the (painfully slow) internet
- going to a jazz bar
The food is great! Tonight was sweet and sour chicken and rice with banana-chocolate cake and pudding for dessert. Yum.
18:50ish--eat another portion of dinner
19:30--spend next 6 hours doing some kind of combination of the aforementioned activities
1:30ish--go upstairs
I always stay up pretty late, The 18-bed room I sleep in often has weird smells and loud snorers. So its either beat the snorers to bed or go to bed when I'm so tired I'll fall asleep nevermind the smells or noises.
1:35--make decision whether to sleep or shower, seeing as though I didn't shower in the morning.
Current score: Sleep 8 Hygiene 7
Yes, that means there are days I dont shower. Judge me, I not ashamed. I don't think I'm the only one who takes less showers in the winter.
2:00--Fall asleep (hopefully)
4:00--Dream of watching Sportscenter or going back to Cuba or eating chick-fil-a or being one of the 15,000 in Coleman Coliseum or Ashley Jackson...
9:00--repeat
Sunday, 13 February 2011
White-washing picket fences
This is normally the point where I'd say "Why's it gotta be white?" to try to create an awkward racial moment... But I'll refrain.
I've been here a week now and I'm starting to become a pretty quick bed maker. I can take out the trash, spray down windows and sinks, and vacuum and mop floors with the best of them. (Don't tell my mom)
The weird thing is I'm enjoying it. It's like I'm one of those kids who was convinced by that one guy that white washing picket fences is fun.
I think there's two reasons I'm enjoying being a cleaner in this hostel:
1) The location. Amsterdam is a beautiful city. When the lights reflect off the canals at night it's particularly nice. (I'll try to do pics soon)
When I first arrived in Cuba last year, every little thing I did seemed exciting because it was a new place. So when I played basketball or shopped at a market, it wasn't just playing basketball and shopping. It was playing basketbal and shopping... IN CUBA! Or when I went to Peru a couple years ago and volunteered at a local school, in my mind it wasn't helping out at a school everyday. It was being at TA... IN PERU!
Get what I'm trying to say? The mundane things, for me, become exciting when I'm in a new place.
2) The people. The staff here is composed of mostly college aged volunteers from around the world. Seeing as though it's a Christian hostel, they're all Christians but obviously the same isn't true of all the guests. It's been cool to talk and hear different people's (staff and guests) beliefs and stories about how they ended up in Amsterdam.
One week in and I'm already a little sad I'll only be here another 3 weeks. I'm starting to realize that when I travel I think I'd rather be in one place for a while and really get to know it rather than see a lot of places for short amounts of time. Plus I feel like I'm "part of the family" already. Everyone's been super nice and fun to hang out with.
The point of all this I guess is that when you're white washing fences in a new and beautiful city with a bunch of cool, interesting new frineds, life isn't so bad.
I've been here a week now and I'm starting to become a pretty quick bed maker. I can take out the trash, spray down windows and sinks, and vacuum and mop floors with the best of them. (Don't tell my mom)
The weird thing is I'm enjoying it. It's like I'm one of those kids who was convinced by that one guy that white washing picket fences is fun.
I think there's two reasons I'm enjoying being a cleaner in this hostel:
1) The location. Amsterdam is a beautiful city. When the lights reflect off the canals at night it's particularly nice. (I'll try to do pics soon)
When I first arrived in Cuba last year, every little thing I did seemed exciting because it was a new place. So when I played basketball or shopped at a market, it wasn't just playing basketball and shopping. It was playing basketbal and shopping... IN CUBA! Or when I went to Peru a couple years ago and volunteered at a local school, in my mind it wasn't helping out at a school everyday. It was being at TA... IN PERU!
Get what I'm trying to say? The mundane things, for me, become exciting when I'm in a new place.
2) The people. The staff here is composed of mostly college aged volunteers from around the world. Seeing as though it's a Christian hostel, they're all Christians but obviously the same isn't true of all the guests. It's been cool to talk and hear different people's (staff and guests) beliefs and stories about how they ended up in Amsterdam.
One week in and I'm already a little sad I'll only be here another 3 weeks. I'm starting to realize that when I travel I think I'd rather be in one place for a while and really get to know it rather than see a lot of places for short amounts of time. Plus I feel like I'm "part of the family" already. Everyone's been super nice and fun to hang out with.
The point of all this I guess is that when you're white washing fences in a new and beautiful city with a bunch of cool, interesting new frineds, life isn't so bad.
Friday, 4 February 2011
Naked girl, naked girl... Christian hostel.
Well, not completely naked. But they weren't wearing much, that's for sure. This was my first night in Amsterdam and the shameless prostituion in the well known Red Light District was hard to miss.
I was heading to the hostel I was staying at for the night--a Christian hostel, I had been told, where there was a possibility I could work and stay there for free. But as I was walking, I got the feeling I was heading the wrong way as the number of barely dressed women increased. Naked girl, naked girl... Christian hostel--I turned a corner and there it was. One hour in and I knew Amsterdam would be an interesting city.
Here are some things I've noticed over the past few days:
-Everyone bikes. Everyone. I guess most Americans (myself included) have this type of attitude towards bikes: "As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists" But here it's normal, almost essential, to cycle most places. Parking is hard to find and super expensive when you do find it.
-The term "coffeeshop" does not reefer (intentially spelled wrong) to a cafe type restaurant in which one may go to ejnoy a nice cup of joe. Well, maybe you can get a good cup of coffee, but that isn't their main item of interest. I don't know, I guess "Weedshop" or "Marijuanashop" don't have the same ring to it.
-Almost everyone speaks a decent amount of English. This is probably because the Netherlands and northern Belgium are the only places where the people speak Dutch (I think) so it's necessary to learn English. This fact has ben very helpful... especially when I'm lost. It'd be tough to be in a country where I dont understand anyone and no one understands me.
-"Hi my name is Amsterdam..." All other cities attending meeting "Hiii Amsterdam." Amsterdam continues, "...and I'm a sex addict" Seriously, this place really loves their sex. Sex museums, sex shops, sex for sale, live sex shows. It's crazy and impossible to miss.
I hope to find out more about the city as I'm here. I'm gonna do the work and live for free thing at the hostel for the next four weeks so I'll be here a while. Yea, I guess that's all for now.
[Insert short, possibly witty sentence to end blog entry here]
I was heading to the hostel I was staying at for the night--a Christian hostel, I had been told, where there was a possibility I could work and stay there for free. But as I was walking, I got the feeling I was heading the wrong way as the number of barely dressed women increased. Naked girl, naked girl... Christian hostel--I turned a corner and there it was. One hour in and I knew Amsterdam would be an interesting city.
Here are some things I've noticed over the past few days:
-Everyone bikes. Everyone. I guess most Americans (myself included) have this type of attitude towards bikes: "As a driver I hate pedestrians, and as a pedestrian I hate drivers, but no matter what the mode of transportation, I always hate cyclists" But here it's normal, almost essential, to cycle most places. Parking is hard to find and super expensive when you do find it.
-The term "coffeeshop" does not reefer (intentially spelled wrong) to a cafe type restaurant in which one may go to ejnoy a nice cup of joe. Well, maybe you can get a good cup of coffee, but that isn't their main item of interest. I don't know, I guess "Weedshop" or "Marijuanashop" don't have the same ring to it.
-Almost everyone speaks a decent amount of English. This is probably because the Netherlands and northern Belgium are the only places where the people speak Dutch (I think) so it's necessary to learn English. This fact has ben very helpful... especially when I'm lost. It'd be tough to be in a country where I dont understand anyone and no one understands me.
-"Hi my name is Amsterdam..." All other cities attending meeting "Hiii Amsterdam." Amsterdam continues, "...and I'm a sex addict" Seriously, this place really loves their sex. Sex museums, sex shops, sex for sale, live sex shows. It's crazy and impossible to miss.
I hope to find out more about the city as I'm here. I'm gonna do the work and live for free thing at the hostel for the next four weeks so I'll be here a while. Yea, I guess that's all for now.
[Insert short, possibly witty sentence to end blog entry here]
Saturday, 29 January 2011
Belgium: Call me Colin Farrell...
...because I'm ______.
Any guesses? Anybody?
Back in my days as a multi-talented, drive-thru specialist Chick-fil-A employee, when the clock would strike 9:59 (I was usually off at 10:00), I would often say this line: "Call me Nicolas Cage because I'm... (pause for dramatic effect and resist urge to say "a horrible actor") Gone in 60 seconds." It got a laugh exactly one time.
Seriously though, did anyone ever see that insanely horrible movie Ghost Rider? If I ever see Mr. Cage in person I will punch him in the face for stealing 2 hours of my life. It's painfully bad.
Anyway no more stalling. In Bruges was the answer I was looking for--a movie shot in Bruges that Colin Farrell did a couple years ago. I was also in Gent and in Brussels, but I don't think those are movies.
Ok enough small talk, on with the pictures... (clicking on them makes them bigger and better)
Bruges and Gent
(the cities looked similar and I couldn't remember which pics were taken where)
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| I like the look of the buildings |
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| Leaning trees--I feel like a clever person could come up with a funny caption for this picture. "Paul Bunyon sneezed" was the best I could do. |
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| Action shot--this is Bruges, I think |
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| One of many Cathedrals |
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| A castle from the 15th (?) century |
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| A less artistic shot of the same castle |
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| Olivia and Annabelle: wonderful guides (and salsa dancers) |
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| I'm a sucker for water reflecticious photos |
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| None of us had any idea where to go when we arrived in Gent. Guess which way we went |
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| Again with the water reflections |
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| My first Belgian waffle. That's whipped cream, ice cream, powdered sugar and chocolate sauce. Yum |
Brussels
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| A classic case of no picture I took coming close to doing this view of the city justice |
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| "Manneken Pis" (Little Man Piss) This is a pretty well know statue. Legend has it he pissed on a fire and saved Brussels a long time ago-- either it was a small fire or he had been holding it in far too long. |
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| Belgian flags |
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| Can't remember what this building is. Cathedral is always a safe bet here. |
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| Olivia: "Austin if you're not in any of the pictures no one will believe you're really here." Exhibit A. |
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