discombobulation

And now some randoms. Current events in my life that have failed to make themselves into fully-fledged posts.

(1) Things at Spring Valley continue to become crazier and crazier. Not only has Jessica moved to Brown Street as the ASM, but Faith left the store and the store’s now under new management. And in the mere month since I left, there have been handfuls of other people quitting or putting in their two weeks notices. The store is entering quite a chaotic phase, and at least two people blame it on me (jokingly, of course) since I was the first to go. “I just saw what was on the horizon and said, ‘To hell with this,’” I reply; “And, besides, Wade left before me. Blame him.” Ha. Spring Valley was a great place to work, but with so many people leaving and with Faith gone, and with my only reason to really stay in Dayton gone to, well, Dayton itself, I feel confirmed again and again in the conviction that moving to Cincinnati was the best idea.

(2) I haven’t bought a pack of cigarettes in a week. It’s a good first step (or at least a first step) towards quitting smoking. Already, even with buying the occasional cigar and smoking my pipe, I’ve saved about thirty-five dollars. I don’t need to run to the bank anymore, and I can just exist off tips made at work. Once I get caught up with paying Sallie Mae, I’ll be able to shove some moneys away. The next step is to get down to just two black-&-milds a day, and then to one, then to… Well, you know. Half, obviously. But then none. That’s my plan, and I’m sticking with it. Phase 2—two black-&-milds a day—begins this week. We’ll see if I can’t pull this off by 2012.

(3) I’ve got new glasses, and they’re baller shot caller. They were cheap. They’re simple. And they don’t have nose-guards (I’ve always hated those things). Both Mandy and Amanda are absolutely in love with them, and I like them, too. They make me look older, more mature. I look like a kid without them (and half the time with them), so I’ll take anything I can at this point. And, besides, my eyes are getting a rest from the contacts.

(4) “You look like a writer in those sunglasses,” John said. I’ve been steadily working through “re:framing repentance,” tweaking and reshaping it as the 2nd draft. I’ve already got a handful of people willing to read through and edit the 2nd draft, leaving comments and concerns and questions and all that stuff on the margins. I’ll go through the 3rd rough draft and then seek publication. There are two routes to go with it, and I’ll probably go the path most tread.

(5) Spiritually, things have been on the upswing for me these last couple weeks. There’s a lot to it, and expect blog posts on it within the month, but right now let’s just suffice it to say that I wasn’t in a great place, but God’s been clearing the fog from my lenses and has been helping me see things anew. This in turn is giving me great hope, peace, and joy; but not without the knowledge that (a) I must own up to my own mistakes and stop making God an ethereal scapegoat for my screw-ups and (b) there’s much that remains to be done in my own repentance. One might scoff, saying, “One who is wrestling through repentance is also writing a book on the subject? How hypocritical!” Perhaps, but let’s all be honest here: sanctification is progressive, and it’s not linear; and repentance—and I mean true repentance—is always a struggle. Everyone struggles with repentance, there’re just those who’ll fess up to it and thus who gloss over it best they can. Much has been contributing to this spiritual “revitalization,” not least being here in Cincinnati around people who love God and are passionate about his kingdom. Back in Dayton I didn’t have people in my life daily who could challenge and encourage me, and I have that here. This place, it’s like good soil: much can grow here.