#farmtime[z]

yes, that's a twig in my hair. no, i didn't notice it until just now.

If we have spare time on Thursdays, I take the guys on an hour-long uphill hike at Gorman Heritage Farms. Really, it only takes about twenty minutes; but Ben's so slow, and he hates hiking, that he drags it out an extra forty minutes. In the collage above, Jason and I are chilling out by a stream waiting for Ben to catch up. Jason is definitely the heavier of the two, but he can keep up with me, and that's saying something.

I'll be spending this weekend at a lake in Hillsboro: swimming, fishing, hiking, and campfires are on the agenda. Ashley and I are planning on escaping early each morning to do our morning devotions down by the lake. This will be my parents' first time around the girls for more than a couple hours. Ashley, Amanda, and I are hoping they'll be more than willing to watch them for a couple hours each day so we can go do our own thing. Here's a picture of the beautiful girls that Ashley sent me Thursday. "The girls say Hi and wish you were home to play with them!"

#adorbs

I'm going to log off of here and start packing.
Ashley and I are going to go for a run (and for a dip!) before we head out.
The girls have no idea where we're going.
Chloe's been talking nonstop how she wants to go fishing and hiking.
(I'm thinking she'll be pretty stoked)

on global warming

Global Warming is a fact. 

Period. 

The only people who really argue against it are (a) politicians whose biggest backers come from oil and gas companies directly affected by any governmental restrictions to curb global warming, (b) a minority of scientists whose funding comes from the oil and gas companies, and (c) people who get their information from Fox News and other media outlets who put more value on politicians who agree with their values than scientists who present evidence that go against their values. I've never heard anyone say "I don't believe in global warming" who has any inkling of all the evidence in support of it. I've read the studies and done the research, and I can say without a doubt that global warming is a reality, and if you disagree with it, you're either ignorant, naive, or downright stupid. 

Oil and gas companies fight against the science of global warming because the world's temperature has increased by half a degree due to increasing industrial emissions. When fossil fuels are burned, they emit carbon dioxide which in turn prevents energy from leaving the earth, focusing that energy back down to earth, resulting in an ever-increasing global temperature (hence the term "global warming").

For those who say "Okay, global warming may be real, but it's effects are being blown out of proportion," here's a few snippets of information about what we can expect. A 200-foot sea level rise may not sound like a big deal, but lots of people live near the coast, and humans can't breathe underwater. If water temperatures increase a mere six degrees, we'll be facing a global catastrophe. It'll be a climate akin to the one experienced by the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, and we're not ready for that.

With a One Degree increase, coral reefs will die and deserts will spread throughout the world. There will be vast extinctions of plants and animals. Food sources will plummet, the price of food will therefore skyrocket, and mass starvation will rock our planet. With a Two Degree increase, tens of millions of people will be starving, catastrophic floods will blanket the earth, the sea level will rapidly rise, and the increasing temperature of the oceans will create hurricanes that make our current ones look like mediocre gales. An increase of Three to Five degrees will melt the ice at the poles, and much of the earth will become inhabitable. Once we hit a Six Degree rise, hundreds of millions (if not billions) of people will be starving, and humanity will be facing mass extinction. The survivors will live in what can only be described as a post-apocalyptic wasteland. 

This snippet from The News Room captures it best:

WATCH IT HERE

(I can't embed it into this post)

Trust me: you should watch it.

#theNewRoom

Ashley was gone most of the day Monday, so I enlisted the help of the girls in cleaning and reorganizing her bedroom. It's something she's wanted to do for months, but she hasn't had much time to get it done. She had to go to the dentist, which put her in a foul mood (who can blame her?), so I figured it'd be a nice surprise. When she got home she was nearly in tears. "I used to hate being in my room because it was so cluttered and messy, but now I feel like it's livable!" I'm just glad I could help her out and make her happy.

I sent Amanda pictures (see below).

"Holy shit!" she exclaimed. "That looks amazing!"

I told her it took us nearly four hours.

"Oh I believe it. That room looked insane."

And now you can even see the floor!

on writing (V)

The bane of my existence? Writer's Block. Ashley's noticed a trend: I will go weeks without writing anything, stumbling over every word, my fingers hovering over the keyboard, and then, as if a switch is flipped, I hammer out fifteen, twenty, thirty pages in a series of days. I go from being unable to write a decent sentence to being unable to stop writing decent sentences. "If only I could bottle this inspiration..." 

But if we're being honest, Writer's Block is often used as a short-hand for laziness. I'm guilty of it. There are times when I go to The Anchor for a couple hours of writing and I end up spending the entire time reading articles online. While much of it may be due to laziness, I don't think that's always the case: sometimes the muse slips out for a while. Writers' Workshops have all sorts of homeopathic remedies for the dreaded Block, but what works best is pretty simple: as the picture says, Keep calm and write something. Having reached a Block in my current writing project, I gritted my teeth and just kept on writing, even when I was unhappy with the product. Of course, I kept going back over it, rewriting and revising time and again to get it looking somewhat professional. 

A few days ago Ashley and I sat down on the sofa when the girls were in the playroom and I read her fifteen pages of what I'd written in the midst of my Writer's Block, seeking her input. Ashley knows I value honesty, and more than once she's told me she doesn't like a scene, or a passage, and she tells me why. I know I can trust her, because she knows how important it is to me to hear what she really thinks. Her response to those fifteen pages? "I don't know what you mean by Writer's Block, because all of that sounds fantastic! You really capture the panic, the hurried atmosphere, the tension of the moment. It literally kept me on the edge of my seat. There were points where my heart-rate even accelerated, and that never happens to me when I'm reading a story!" Her words were encouraging, but I can't take all the credit: Mozart certainly helped.

Scientists have determined that listening to Mozart increases creativity.

(True story: look it up)

They're not really sure why this is the case, but it's shown to be the case.

Thus I have been listening to lots of Mozart lately.

Here's The Marriage of Figaro. Definitely worth a listen!

the end of the month

pre-church selfies. #kidsnotpictured

Over these past couple days I've just been overwhelmed by two things: 

(1) the ungratefulness in my heart and 

(2) all the blessings in my life for which I should be grateful. 

Here's something I've struggled with my entire life: focusing on those things that cause me angst and anxiety at the expense of all the wonderful things that are present in my life. It's ridiculous, really: why focus on the 5% in life that you'd love to change at the cost of blinding yourself to the 95% of pure awesomeness that you call your own? The truth is that though the past year did not go as I had hoped or planned, not all is a loss, and when I go to sleep at night, I see all that I have to be thankful for: amazing friendships, a spectacular family, and a wonderful woman to call my own with two girls who love me to the moon and back. Ashley has put up with so much from me, she has shown such astonishing patience, and she's always there for me, day or night, no matter what it is I need. She is the definition of a supportive woman, and every time I hear a Jamaican sing about his girl, I can't help but think of her:

when I need motivation

my one solution is my queen

'cause she stays strong.

She is always in my corner

right there when I want her.

All these other girls are tempting

but I'm empty when you're gone.

Oh I think that I've found myself a cheerleader.

She is always right there when I need her.

She walks like a model.

She grants me my wishes like a genie in a bottle.

She gives me love and affection.

Baby did I mention you're the only girl for me,

no, I don't need a next one.

Mama loves you, too, she thinks I made the right selection.

Now all that's left to do

is just for me to pop the question.

Now, in regards to the last line, that's not happening anytime soon.
(but that's not entirely out of the question)
And with a woman like Ashley, it's close to a No-Brainer.

#pooltime[z]

Don't mind the static expression on my face.

(I thought Amanda was taking pictures, not a video)

an ode from Zion

YHWH is in the right,
  for I have rebelled against his word.
See, YHWH, how distressed I am;
  my stomach churns,
  my heart is wrung within me,
  because I have been very rebellious.
I am one who has seen affliction
  under the rod of God's wrath;
  he has driven and brought me
  into darkness without any light.
The thought of my homelessness
  is wormwood and gall.
My soul continually thinks of it
  and is bowed down within me.
     (Lamentations 1.18a, 20a; 3.1-2, 19-20)

But this I call to mind,
  and therefore I have hope:
The steadfast love of YHWH never ceases;
  his mercies never come to an end;
  they are new every morning;
  great is your faithfulness.
"The Lord is my portion," says my soul,
  "therefore I will hope in him."
YHWH is good to those who wait for him,
  to the soul that seeks him.
It is good that one should wait quietly
  for the salvation of YHWH.
It is good for one to bear the yoke in youth,
  to sit in silence when the Lord has imposed it,
  to put one's mouth to the dust
  (there may yet be hope)...
For the Lord will not reject forever.
Although he causes grief, he will have
  compassion according to the abundance
  of his steadfast love,
  for he does not eagerly afflict or grieve anyone.
     (Lamentations 3.22-23a, 24-29, 31-33)

Is it not from the Most High
  that good and bad come?
Why should any who draw breath
  complain about the punishment of their sins?
Let us test and examine our ways,
  and return to YHWH.
Let us lift up our hearts as well as our hands
  to God in heaven.
I called on Your name, YHWH,
  from the depths of the pit;
you hear my plea, "Do not close your ear
  to my cry for help, but give me relief!"
You came near when I called on you;
  you said, "Do not fear!"
You have taken up my cause, YHWH,
  you have redeemed my life.
     (Lamentations 3.37-41, 55-58)

Restore us to yourself, YHWH,
  that we may be restored;
  renew our days of old--
  unless you have utterly rejected us,
  and are angry with us beyond measure.
     (Lamentations 5.21-22)