I would say "happy Halloween!" but I don't want to offend my mom. (And it's not like this site has Halloween written all over it or anything.) You see, my mom doesn't believe in Halloween. As a child, I didn't get to trick or treat. Sure, we got to dress up. But the only house we got trick or treat at was my grandma's. In my mom's defense, (since I grew up on a farm) my grandma was my only neighbor within a few miles. Otherwise we had to go to "harvest festivals" dressed as bunnies or angels. Once I got to go as a rat. That was about as scary as I got. Well, happy candy day to all, however you celebrate.

I absolutely hate having a runny nose because it matters not how many times you blow it, for in a matter of moments it is runny and gross again.

Well, Wendy and I are both sick at home today. I think part of it has to do with me breathing in all those ashes and the smokey air caused by all the fires. Where we live, we are pretty much surrounded by all the fires, but they aren't too close to us. I think Orange County is the only one that hasn't been declared a state of emergency--that is, unless Seth's backyard gets set on fire by the yuppies trying to eradicate the mobile home estates.

Last night, I also redesigned the site for a special holiday look. That's a picture of a pumpkin I carved drilled last night.

Home a little earlier than planned. We left around dinner time since they were evacuating tourists from the mountain due to the fires. It was cool, though. I got to see lots of fire and plenty of smoke. So now I'm home, I smell like a chimney, but Lake Arrowhead was beautiful (the wind was blowing the smoke the other way) and I enjoyed the stay.

I'm leaving Brandon home alone this weekend. I'll be heading to the mountains for the women's retreat for my church. I almost volunteered to drive, because the person who was driving the group that I was carpooling with couldn't, but that wouldn't have turned out so well. See, I'm super afraid of heights. The last time Brandon and I drove to Lake Arrowhead or Big Bear I spent pretty much the whole way up with my eyes closed yelling, "slow down!" Plus, the group I'm driving with will be leaving after work, so it will be dark. So, it's better that I won't be driving.

I just felt like blogging because I'm sitting here all ready to go and wendy's still getting ready. She said I could blog about our tire. There's nothing much going on with that, except that we needed a new one because it was warped and it was making the whole car shake—yes the tire that I fixed. I don't think that the strange shape was caused by my patching but from the incident when it became flat in the first place. Other than that, there isn't much going on. It's just the daily grind of work and school. I always run into people at church or somewhere else and they always ask the inevitable question, "What's going on?" I always have the same answer, "Work and School." I like both work and school, but sometimes we need a break. We haven't had any sort of vacation since January and we were sick that whole week. I can't wait until December because then we can be done with school for the semester and off work for ten days. Also, it will be nice to see Wendy's family again.

If you live in California, then you've probably seen the California Dairy commercials. The slogan is, "Happy cows come from California." The commercials are pretty funny, too. For instance, the happy cows get foot massages by the earthquakes and complain that they never last long enough. Or two bulls admire some lady cows playing in the sprinklers. Yeah, so you probably have to see them. Anyway, for those people who say that "happy cows come from California," I have one word for you: Norco (er, northern Corona). The poor cows are all sweltering under the sun, packing under a single tree (should they be lucky enough to have one), and they stink like nobody's business. These aren't happy cows. No, not at all.

Yes, that's right. The authorship of Hebrews should no longer be called into question because the 1769 edition of King James Version published by Cambridge University Press says that Paul the Apostle wrote the Epistle to the Hebrews. All the endless discussions in the scholarly community should be placed aside because it was not Clement of Rome, Barnabas, Luke, Philip, Priscilla, Jude, Silvanus, nor Apollos. It was Paul—the Cambridge Bible says so at the beginning of the letter.

But wait. At the end of the epistle the colophon says something quite different. The author of Hebrews was not Paul, but Timothy. You would think that the publishers would (1) not be so dogmatic as to ascribe the authorship to a person without explanation, and (2) not have conflicting views in the very same book. Was it Paul? Or was it Timothy? Or did Paul preach it and Timothy was the amanuensis? Who knows. I just thought it was funny how the Cambridge bible contradicts itself here.

Big News! Don't Ignore This Post On the Bottom!
We're coming to the South to visit for the holidays. It became official last night when we bought the plane tickets. We'll be flying into Atlanta on December 26 and leaving January 4. Get in touch with me if you want to hang out with us while we're in Alabama. We'd love to see whoever wants to see us. :)

I called my old college today for the first time since I left. It's time to face the past. Time to face the fact that you know what, I don't remember ever getting my last report card. Oh, and I need to figure out exactly what classes out of all the hours I took will actually transfer. It may turn out to be depressing. But it was amusing to hear a southern accent on the phone that wasn't a friend or family member. Hehe.

It was a phillips head screw that did my tire in. Brandon and I were just about to begin our mad race to work when, only seconds after slamming my door, I sensed something amiss. The entire car was leaning right. I'm not that fat. We filled the tire with some fix-a-flat (you know what, I finally appreciate that gift, Brandi) and left the car at home in favor of Brandon's explorer. My poor car. Will its hardships never end?

Happy Columbus Day!

Alright, it's apparent that many didn't get the little joke below, which is understandable. So, sorry if anyone was offended, confused, or anything by it. Also, please disregard the comment thread completely, because it makes no sense anymore. I'm not sure it ever did. :)

The weekend turned out swell. On Saturday we got a call from some friends who had tickets to see the Pacific Symphony and couldn't go. It turned out to be an event where the symphony played two peices and then stopped and explained parts to listen for in each. Nice learning experience. Beautiful music, too.

Afterward we went out to eat with Brandon's mom, her boyfriend, Brandon's brother and his girlfriend. Then we went to Brandon's mom's house for the traditional birthday cake and ice cream. So now, I believe my birthday has been well celebrated. I won't even worry-no, think about tomorrow.

What to do!

I really enjoy writing for Mosaic Life!!!

Wendy sent me an ultimatum and said that if I don't blog by Friday then I'm off the team. My problem is that I really enjoy writing for Mosaic Life and I don't want to be kicked off, yet I have so much other stuff that is more important than writing here. I'm taking 4 hours at school (that is not more than I have ever taken) I am working everyday until five, come home, clean, do homework and then still try to spend time with Wendy. I'm not complaining by any means. I love my life and I love being married to Wendy. I just have a lot going on. I have plenty to write about, I just never seem to have the time to sit down and do it. When I have the time, I'm too exhausted from going and going and going all the time that I don't feel like sitting in front of a computer, especially since I sit at a computer all day at school then at work and then I do homework in front of the computer. I'm thinking about not writing until May whenever I graduate, but I don't want to be off the team of writers just because I can't post twice every week, especially when I have something I want to tell everyone. This is a difficult decision, that's why I posted this. Since I posted before Friday, Wendy won't kick me off and I have time to think about things. I do really want to write. I don't mean to be a slacker and I really wish that I had time to write all my thoughts down. I just have everything else pulling me in different directions and I don't need this as well. I'll make my decision, hopefully everything will work out and I will remain on the team.

It's a week 'til my birthday. Less than a week, actually. I'll be 21 on October 13th. What's weird is I'm not really looking forward to it this year. My birthday is on the day we have our board meeting at work, which is supposed a particularly stressful day. I may also have to stay late. Plus, midterms are the very next day. I dunno, it's just that this is my last good birthday. As you know, the good birthdays years are 13 (you become a teenager), 15 (you get your permit), 16 (you get to drive alone, and sometimes get a car), 17/18 (you get to vote and watch rated R movies, as if you didn't watch rated R movies before), and then 21. The rest of the milestones are just me getting old. Hehe, I'm such a ray of sunshine tonight. I guess I'm already an old grump.

P.S. Exactly two years ago today, Brandon and I talked online for the first time. There now, that's something to smile about.

I can't remember who said it, but each time I see any of them, I remember what was said. There was a lone pigeon, and in disgust, the person said, "Ew, pigeons! They're nothing but rodents with wings!" I don't even remember what was said next. My mind was busy entertaining the images of big fat rats, their bald, disgusting tails dangling as they flapped about the city, swooping down to terrorize and gather food and rubbage. They would be diseased simply by default. It would be pure chaos. By the time my attention faded back into the conversation the talk of pigeons had long ended, and the lazy rodent with wings had gone somewhere else where he would be more appreciated.

What should my major be? Any ideas? Comment.