monday update: october 20

The weekend that was... the leaves are changing and this weekend the temperature plummeted. That meant it was great weather to stay inside and relax on the couch. Friday we ventured out into the rain to pick up a refurb'd PS2 (it's DDR time now!), had a great lunch at Casa, got pumpkin muffin mix at Trader Joe's, went out to the jam-packed theater (it was raining...) for Secret Life of Bee's (another great portrayal of race relations in the mid-20th century) and got dessert after that. On Saturday, we spent all day (literally) in front of the TV watching football: Clemson vs. Georgia Tech, Spiders vs. UMass and Hokies vs. BC. Unfortunately, only one of our teams won. And during the VT/BC game, I put up our 2nd TV next to the other one so we could keep up with the Red Sox and Rays.

And Sunday. Oh, Sunday. Sundays are so busy now! We had a great close to our (entirely too long) series on our storyline. The students walked into the youth room in complete silence, had some guided prayer and Scripture reading on the big screen and then worship time. The message was reading the stories of Jesus' life, and we closed with the first Last Supper story, broke the bread and had communion. The kids had a great experience. I think we'll do it again!

Where I am at the moment... Richmond for the week. Actually, Richmond for a while. I'm good with that.

To-do list this week... This is catch-up week. And it's Fall Break, so no class Thurs/Fri. Last week was insanely busy and I felt like I was behind all week. This week is more relaxing. And I might venture out to see an unnamed presidential candidate in the capital city tomorrow...

Music that caught my attention... Two songs. Both by Jason Mraz. The first one is his new single, "I'm Yours." The second was the closing track on his last album, "Mr. A-Z," titled "Song for a Friend." At the end of the track, a choir sings with him, and in that choir are some of my former youth. They recorded that three years ago and I'm just now listening to it...

wednesday catch-up.

If you can't make a Monday Rundown, at least make it in time for a Wednesday Catch-up.

Looking back, it is fairly evident that certain periods of life can be defined as a season: of joy, of waiting, of change. Well, the past 6 months or so have been all of those. The seasons of joy and change are continuing, which is great -- I would not want it any other way. But now, the season of waiting is over. As of Sunday morning, I have a new job at a great church with people I really respect, and I am excited to be working with them.

The rubber has been hitting the road this week here at Gayton, and I'm excited about what lies ahead. My office is "blah" right now with a lot of bare space on the walls. I'm sure it will be full pretty soon.

And most importantly, I am now (again) legitimately rvaYM

.

monday, monday, monday.

Well, it's Tuesday. But Monday was a holiday, so Tuesday is the Monday.

the weekend that was: A long drive to Charlotte, obnoxious phone calls, a tough Hokie loss, a night in Wilmington and a tour of EUE/Screen Gem Studio on Sunday.

where i am at the moment: rVA, but just until Friday. Again.

on my to-do list this week: Will I find a job this week? I can only hope so. Hopefully I'll be reading and writing some this week. This would be the fun reading and writing, since classes start next week.

procrastinating about: And I still can't get motivated too much to read or write.

books i’m in the midst of: Eat This Book (Eugene Peterson), Thunderstruck (Erik Larson) and A Comedian's Guide to Theology (Thor Ramsey).

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Kind of the opposite. We made nearly the entire drive from Wilmington back to RIC without the radio or iPods. It was kind of nice.

next trip: After last weekend's abysmal ending to the Hokies/ECU game, I can only hope they step it up for Furman this weekend. We'll be spending the weekend in Roanoke, which will be our first visit since the wedding. Hard to believe. And the Spiders, coming off a solid win at Elon last week, moved up to #3 in the nation heading into Saturday's matchup at UVA.

how i’m feeling about this week: Eh. Starting the week with two flat tires is never good. The anticipation of school, albeit something to add to my calendar, is kind of depressing. And the lack of job is wearing thin.

monday.

the weekend that was: A rainy day in Charleston, SC, and a long, long drive back to VA. And a nice Sunday evening watching the Spider soccer team beat JMU.

where i am at the moment: rVA, but just until Friday.

on my to-do list this week: Find a job? Maybe.

procrastinating about: Reading more. I have all sorts of free time and a nice pile of books. Still can't get motivated too much.

book i’m in the midst of: This Way to Youth Ministry by Duffy Robbins. Still reading. It is 550+ pages, so I can't get too down on myself. Also on the to-read list: Eat This Book (Eugene Peterson) and Thunderstruck (Erik Larson).

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Coldplay. I'm always a step behind on the latest music, but the title track from "Viva La Vida" caught my attention last week. I think it's the string section jamming out. And I just plain like Coldplay. Good stuff.

next trip: Charlotte, NC. College football season is here, and the Hokies are opening up against the ECU Pirates at Panther Stadium. (In all fairness to my Spiders, they open up against Elon University, trying to hold onto their Top 10 spot in the FCS Division rankings. Go Spiders!).

how i’m feeling about this week: Pretty excited. Even if nothing exciting happens during the next few days, the anticipation of college football season starting up is enough to push me through the week.

monday.

the weekend that was: the first time Kim and I had spent two straight weekends off the road in a year and a half. And it was long -- Kim had off Friday, so we got a three-day weekend. Braves game, pool time, church softball with two wins against my brother’s team, and shopping for her birthday.
where i am at the moment: richmond, VA. I should be here for a while.

on my to-do list this week: read. A lot. And find a job? Probably not, but I can hope.

procrastinating about: at the moment, getting off the computer. I’m still trying to wake up, so I’ll let it go.

book i’m in the midst of: This Way to Youth Ministry by Duffy Robbins. I figure if I don’t have a job, I should at least be reading to get my mind ready for when I do have a job. And by the time I finish that, a preview copy of it by Craig Groeschel should be here. What is it about? It.

music that seemed to catch my attention this past week: Aqualung. The photographer that did our wedding put an Aqualung song on the slideshow

next trip: Broadway on Friday. No, not the avenue in New York. Broadway, Virginia, a town of 2,192 in northwest Virginia.

And it’s not the next trip, but it is a trip...to Nashville! I got an invite from Youth Specialties Friday afternoon to help out with NYWC in Nashville in November. Should be fun!

how i’m feeling about this week: I’m kind of excited about reading, and getting some things done around the apartment. I wish I had a job, but I’ll do my best to be productive around here.