Late night in Jersey...

U of D

So this has been a crazy week, but good. I've gotten to talk to some old friends on the phone more this week and work has been really cool. My first ad has been published this week in magazines from BEL.com. I went to Borders to find it in the magazines and it looked better than I anticipated.

Today was a whirlwind setting up for the University of Delaware Pep Rally. This thing is like a freaking Britney Spears concert. The setup process is three days long and there are tons of lights and lots and lots of sound. It was crazy, but in the end, fun...

Then I went to the gym and out to dinner with Nick and Bonnie. Afterwards, we went to a casino and I didn't really gamble a whole lot, I had $7 on me and lost it. Then I was just watching Bonnie play the slots and she kept telling me to not watch her cuz Asians were bad luck. I walked around for a while and then came back. She started playing two machines and I asked if I should man the second machine. Then she started putting money in, her last dollar to be exact, and told me to pull the lever. By the 4th crank, we hit matching triples and won $250! Yay.

Anyway, there's a lot more to talk about, but it's time for bed...I'll write more in the morning.
-Rod

This was interesting...

So I took this survey about my beliefs and it was like someone who had known me for years speaking back at me...

You scored as Emergent/Postmodern. You are Emergent/Postmodern in your theology. You feel alienated from older forms of church, you don't think they connect to modern culture very well. No one knows the whole truth about God, and we have much to learn from each other, and so learning takes place in dialogue. Evangelism should take place in relationships rather than through crusades and altar-calls. People are interested in spirituality and want to ask questions, so the church should help them to do this.

Emergent/Postmodern		82%
Evangelical Holiness/Wesleyan		71%
Classical Liberal		64%
Modern Liberal		54%
Neo orthodox		50%
Charismatic/Pentecostal		43%
Roman Catholic		36%
Fundamentalist		25%
Reformed Evangelical		21%

What's your theological worldview?
created with QuizFarm.com

From DC to ATL to Indy?

This has been a crazy weekend. I started by getting off of work on Friday and driving to Washington DC to see Paul. It was great seeing him again and so happy...I'm glad things are panning out for him, he works so hard for what he has, he deserves it. He showed me around town and I got to meet a few of his new friends which was really cool, Paul's always been able to find friends where he's at...I stayed up until 2am and got up at 3:30am to drive out to the airport. I got out onto highway 95 to get back to the airport and was going in the right direction until I saw a sign that said "Freeway ends 1/4 mile." and I assumed that meant it turned into a local road for a few miles and then went to the freeway again. Nope. I drove and in the blackness, there was just dirt. The road literally ended...so I turned around and found another place where 95 crossed. I got to the airport in time and flew out just as scheduled.

I arrive in Atlanta and didn't realize how BIG the place was...there are freaking subway trains going between gates! Anyway, I got from there to Indy with a very short layover time...I arrived in Indy to meet Bethany's (the bride's) father where he drove me to Bedford where the wedding was to take place.

I got there and set up shop in the hotel room and took a short nap before heading to the family reunion. There, I began taping and interviewing some of Aaron's (the groom's) family. I taped all night doing interviews with the bride and the groom and close friends and family. As usual, people involved closely with the wedding were freaking out so I was trying to remain calm.

The next day was the wedding and it was really cool. The funny thing about weddings in the 50 million I've attended now, is that I noticed a wedding going "right" wasn't the result of things go as planned or not going as planned, or hair being right or the parents being happy or if the cake gets there on time of if it rains or not. What makes a wedding great in the end is that the couple involved is really happy and are excited. When the bride's walking down the aisle crying and you can tell it's because it's suddenly hit her that this is actually happening, you know it's a good wedding.

After the wedding, I headed to Kokomo to visit my parents and friends. Elizabeth and Jeb came with me and my brother to Steak-N-Shake and it was awesome. I miss everyone.

So I just got back into the East Coast and it's time for bed, I'll share more later...
-Rod
P.S. Here's me with the coolest couple in music, Aaron and Bethany:

I'm The One That I Want

So it has been crazy the last few days.

I'm actually kind of stoked about traveling in a few days to see Paul in D.C., Aaron and Bethany at their wedding, Elizabeth, Pamn, Jeb, Peter, my parents and hopefully anyone else I can run into in the few hours I'm half-way across the states. I miss hanging out with everyone...also, I can't believe a few days later Peter will be heading to college! Man, I am old. My younger brother is going to freaking college!

So Sony/Hidden Beach Recordings conference calls resumed this last Saturday. T was on his first call and excited. I can't wait to see what this internship does for him. I'm probably going to be much busier this year with the internship because I'm right by Philly (neo-soul central).

I got a couple Margaret Cho DVDs and watched them. She is a genius. There's a lot of raunch that doesn't need to be there, but her core message is absolutely beautiful. Her first film, "I'm The One That I Want" is all about finding yourself and not letting the world kill you. She said that you have to find your place and not worry about failing at being pieces of everyone else. Plus, she tells stories about growing up Korean-American that I totally relate to. I also like how she's become strong in character and full of personality.

I also picked up the new Jason Mraz CD. I didn't expect it to be great, but I liked one of the singles and read some good reviews. In the end, it was probably one of the most impressive pop albums this year. There are tracks on there with ?uestlove and Scott Storch and some great musical ideas and performances. I also found out that Jason Mraz is an amazing classical tenor. Check out "Mr. Curiousity", "Geek In The Pink", and "Did You Get My Message?".

I decided to to try and relearn Korean. I went over a few things today and started remembering things quickly, so hopefully it will be a painless task. I figure I need to be somewhat fluent in the language 98% of my family speaks.

Anyway, Jersey's still awesome, I gotta go to bed, hope to catch as many people as possible while traveling August 13-16.

Take care,
-Rod

Delaware...