Just for fun

I really have no news to report or exciting blog-worthy material. But I found a funny video on the internet and figured "hey, why not?"
I love the movie 300. It's the ultimate guy movie. I highly recommend it.
Anyway, here's a video that claims to be the PG version of 300. Maybe you have to have seen the movie to find it humorous, or maybe you have to just be as easily amused as I am. You be the judge.




Live big, stay classy.

"This.. is.. Caketown!!"

Boyd Tinsley is my homeboy

If you don't know who Boyd Tinsley is... look him up.
OK just kidding. I'll tell you.
Boyd is the violinist for the Dave Matthews Band. And if you've never heard of THEM, then that's just plain wrong.

I had the privelege of attending a DMB concert last night. I won the tickets at Mariemont's prom in May, and since Mariemont was having its meet-the-team night, I went with Dave Campbell.
It was a pretty sweet concert. Sure, there were some pretty.... excited people there. And yeah, the lawn was a little wet and muddy. No, Dave (Campbell) and I didn't know all the songs. And yes, Dave (Matthews) did take about 5 minutes after every song before starting the next one. BUT...
The concert was one of the most entertaining experiences ever. The music was awesome, the stage was beautiful and intense, and best of all the environment was one of amazing excitement. Here's a sample of one of my favorite Dave songs, and believe me, it's even better when it's live.

The coolest parts were Boyd's impromptu violin solos. This guy goes NUTS when he gets rolling. At times, it seemed like Dave Matthews was completely off stage and Boyd was running the show. Coleman noticed that Boyd's right arm is friggin HUGE. See this guy play violin live and you'll realize why.

That one's called "Ants Marching." You can download it off iTunes, but I highly recommend, when downloading DMB songs, get the live versions.
Downside is, the place was packed, and it took nearly an hour to get home, even if i DIDN'T turn the wrong way on 275. Sorry I missed VI, guys, but I'll see you next week.

I'll update later with info about the first day(s) of school.

Live big. Stay classy.

Back-to-School

I hate those words. I always feel a little bit sick when I read them on the giant signs hanging in Target, the mall, and even on commercials all over TV.

Here's what's been going on with me lately:
ONE- quit my job. It felt great. I've been working a lot this summer, so last Wednesday, as I punched out of Cheeseburger in Paradise for the last time, I realized how summer really is winding down. Hooray for unemployment!
TWO- People leaving. It's no fun. Two of my fellow bloggers are now settled in at their respective universities. Saying goodbye has never been a great forte of mine. I guess you just have to dive into goodbyes knowing that the strong friendships will stick, no matter how many miles separate two people who care about each other.
THREE- Student Leadership Retreat. Pretty great time. I know I'm really excited for this upcoming year at VI (it goes without saying that it is, in fact, my last year at VI). We have a great group of leaders, and I can't wait to see what's in store for the ministry.
FOUR- Dave Matthews. Yep, in 2 days (the same day I start school), I'll be enjoying my first ever Dave Matthews concert. Doesn't get much better.

I'm sure I could come up with a 5, 6, and maybe even a 7, but my brain is still on summer mode. I'll see a lot of you guys at school on Wednesday, and the rest I'll see next week at VI!!

Live big, stay classy.

Violinist Wanted

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about the VI band. Maybe it's because Elliot and Chris are graduating. Maybe it's because the band last week was just three of us. Maybe it's because I really love playing guitar and listening to music.
When I first came to VI, I was terrified. I was a lowly seventh grader and I only had a handful of people from the ministry who I knew. So for the first half hour, the meeting-friends-and-hanging-out was really intimidating. The game we played was fun, but the whole dividing-into-teams situation was also unnerving for me.
But then we got to the music.
I could relate to that. Sure, I didn't know the lyrics. Sure, the band was mostly strangers to me then- Phil Bowdle, Kate Young, Will Lucas, Matt Johnson... but the music was something I could get on board with. It truly is the universal language. The fast and slow sets (back then, people used to mosh during the fast set- that was nuts) were the best and most memorable part of my VI experience.

That's why I am so glad to have worship as my ministry in VI. I'm not an expert guitar player, and my voice is so-so on good days, but I love being up on the stage. I love knowing that even when I play the wrong chord, even when the band is small, God's in the music.
I'm hoping that in this upcoming year we can build our band. It'd be great to have some female voices on stage to accompany Dustin. And maybe some new instruments. For one, the violin.

I have no idea whether "violinist" is even a word. I don't care. All I know is that I love the sound of that instrument. I really wish I knew how to play.
A good friend of mine (you know who you are) recommended that I check out the new CD called "Paper Walls" from Yellowcard. In case you've never heard of them, Yellowcard is a rock/pop punk-ish band that's been around for a few years. Their song "Way Away" was pretty popular a few years back. Anyway, I have never been a huge Yellowcard fan, but I figured since I had some gift card money stored up on iTunes, I'd check it out.
I was amazed.
I had no idea I would like these guys as much as I do. Nor did I have any idea that their band features a VIOLIN. It sounds amazing! Every time I listen to the songs that have violin solos or whenever I hear the violinist (whose name is Sean Mackin) coming in to play harmony, it awes me. I can't help but wonder what it would like if we had a violin- or multiple violins, for that matter, in our VI worship band.
So this isn't just in jest. Do any of you know really good (or even average) violin players? Tell me. Give them my number or the web address for this blog. Do whatever it takes. I'm interested in this.
Here's a few samples off what Yellowcard's violin amazing-ness sounds like:

"Bombers"- a bonus track from Paper Walls


"Gifts & Curses"- forgive the Spanish, and lack of video



Seriously. I want a violinist in the band.
Love you guys!

Live big, stay classy.

Forgive me if this is redundant

I mapped it all out. The remainder of my high school life. One year. Another 370-something days. 8890 hours. 533,000 minutes. 32 million seconds. Sure, 32 million may seem like a lot. But just wait. It's never seemed like a smaller number to me.
August
6-15th: Work daily
17th-19th: Student leadership retreat
22nd: First day of senior year
22nd: Dave Matthews band concert
September
12th-14th: Camp Kern w/ district's 6th graders
15th: ACT testing
22nd: College visit(s) TBD
indefinate: Auditions/casting for Fall play
October
6th: SAT testing
indefinate: Begin mailing out college applications
November:
3rd: College visit OR Youth Specialties
10th: All-day play rehearsal
15th: opening night for play
21st: personal deadline for mailing out college applications
December:
21st: beginning of vacation (location TBD)
25th: Christmas
31st: turn 18
Januray:
indefinate: tryouts for Spring Musical
February:
Ski trip?
March:
20th: premeire of musical
April:
indefinate: wait for acceptance/rejection letters from colleges
May:
27th: last day of school for seniors
June:
8th: graduation


And that's it. With that, my high school education and my life as a sheltered Terrace Park boy will come to an end. I don't mean this to sound sappy or prematurely nostalgiac, but I'm looking forward to this year. I really am excited for being a senior in high school. I just want to make the most out of ever one of those 32 million seconds.
I've had a great run. I'm only 3/4 into high school, and I look back to see some amazing memories. From my first trip to the principals's office (there was a fight in the hallway and I was the only witness who saw the whole thing) to my premiere on the stage as a hot-dog seller with 3 lines in Inherit the Wind... from my first article in the school newspaper (it was pretty bad) to the first Mariemont News TV show that I anchored in (it was also pretty bad)... from being told by my sophomore English teacher that I didn't have what it took to be great to hearing my junior English teacher say that she'd bet her life that I'll achieve greatness... from my first time jumping into the pool as a freshman who had no idea how to swim to winning my heat at Sectionals this year to break both my personal records.
It's all a matter of ups and downs, things that we consider valuable and things that we want to hang on to. There are things that we didn't think were important long ago that turn out to be precious to us later on. There are also frequently things we put stock in one day that the next day turn around to bite us. I really believe out of my classmates, for all their insane parties, interrogations from police, scholastic achievements, and athleticism, I had the absolute best high school experience. I never got thrown in the back of a cop car, I can't say I've ever thrown up on someone else or vice versa, and no one's confusing me for valedictorian... but I've loved high school. Have I had some terrible times where I've hated Mariemont High School? Yeah. But I wouldn't trade it.

Live big while you can. Stay classy because it's who you are.