So on Thursday we get up to take Jon Wil and Jeremy to Disneyland. Ryan and I aren’t going because of cost and another for me is I just wasn’t that excited to go. (I have since looked in my bank account and I totally could have gone:) So yeah we drop them off and head back to the house. Wer beging our day with a little facebook. This is essential to every good life style… This was followed by a move to the living room so that we can watch a movie… The DVD player didn’t work so we ended up on face book again. All in all a great way to start your morning. Well now that I had so much fun I’m thinking how can keep this craziness going? I know a movie at a movie theater! So we get showered and dressed, but we’re ahead of schedule. This bring us to the random excursion! Of you have seen the pictures on facebook you can kinda follow along with the days activities. SO we are early and decide to just drive around. We get on the highway and get off  at a random off ramp. (The first pic is the building we came to at the to of the off ramp) Moving on, we treck throught the streets and the day is gorgeous and there were some awesome buildings. We eventually end up at this beach drive. We see the shore and are on a street that has giant houses on either side. After pasting a park we park so that we can walk around. We walk back down that street street we drove by and got closer look at the beautiful houses. At the end of the road there is beach access so we head out to the beach. At this point Ryan is freaking out about how this is where he wants to live, but not knowing exactly where we are doesn’t help him. We walk over to port police station and ask where we are. The officer proceeds to tell us that we are in Corona Del Mar and tells us of an even better location to check out. So we trecked back to the car an took it farther up the hill. On the other side the view is incredible. One side of the road is a wall of houses but on the other side there are driveways leading to the roofs of houses! It was awesome. We park yet again and walk down to the beach, which was pretty on its own, but there where these spits of rock jetting out into the ocean. So being in adventure mode we sart rock hopping. This suck shoots out the distance of 3 football fields (300 yards:). At the very end is a cement slab and some people fishing. One of the things they had caught was a star fish. Now if you have seen our previos videos you may have noticed that Wil was saying that there was nothing beautiful about California cuz he didn’t see a starfish. Well I sent him a picture with 2 of them in it and the message said “suck it”. I actually went down the side of the rocks onto a couple much smaller rocks that occasionally got submerged as the wave came in. Down there there was at least 50 starfish, at least. So suck it 49 more times Wil! ;) just kidding I love you.

So to quickly rap up the day we headed out to laguna beach, checked out the houses, and had subway. That evening we took a nap, ate dinner, and had a game night over at Jon’s sister’s place. All in all a well spent day.

The only way I can really describe today as a whole is amazing.  I got 10+ hours of sleep, played with/walked a pure-bred german shepherd named Kirra that I am falling in love with, spent 5 hours at In & Out Burger with my Grandma, had some hot tub time, spent a little while at Vanguard University, had the most amazing frozen yogurt of my life, and reflected on life.

Words can’t adequately describe how much I love german shepherds.  Admittedly, my recent love for them was definitely triggered by the movie “I Am Legend,” but I’ve always had a love for them.  Jon’s Aunt has a german shepherd named Kirra, and she’s probably one of my favorite dogs ever.  She’s gorgeous and has a vibrant disposition.  She reminds me a little bit of a dog my Grandma had named Samson, which is also why I think I have become so fond of her.  Regardless, my day started with a walk through the neighborhood with her, which was beneficial for both of us, because I really needed the exercise!  It made me really excited for the day that I can own my own dog.

Upon our return to the house, I found my Grandma waiting for me.  Words cannot adequately express how happy I was to see her, its been a long time since I’ve been able to spend time with her.  We went to In & Out burger, which is one of the best places to eat, period.  I kid you not, we sat at the restaurant for 5 hours!  There is something deeply refreshing about catching up with a family member and genuinely enjoying their company.  I feel like there are conversations that last for hours and it really feels like it, and conversations that last for hours, yet those hours literally just fly by.  This experience was the latter.  :)  I got to show her pictures, and share with her what God was doing in my life.  It was good for me too in a sense that this is the first time in a long time that I feel like I’ve had anything positive to report.  It made me grateful for all that God has been doing in my life.  Plus, there is something so comforting and loving about the presence of my Grandma, for those of you who don’t know that, I would strongly recommend that you do everything in your power to experience it!  :D

After my time with my Grandma, all of us guys got in the hot tub, which is always a good choice, we were even ballsy enough to swim for a short period of time in the unheated pool, which was an odd mixture of refreshing and extremely uncomfortable.  All in all, I’ve concluded that I MUST own a hot tub at some point in my life, there’s just no good reason not to.  Then me, Ryan, Jon, and Devin caught the last few minutes of a student led worship service at Vanguard University.  It was super tight.

Upon our return for Vanguard, Jon and I walked around Westminster for a solid 2 hours and talked about ministry as it pertains to culture, and various things of that nature.  I know, we’re ministry nerds, get over it.

One thing I’ve noticed about myself is that whenever I go on vacations, I tend to get into extremely contemplative moods.  Not in a bad way, my mind just kicks into life reflection mode.  Experiencing the culture down here has been strange to me in that it is so materialistic.  We are in possibly one of the wealthiest areas in the country, and while its cool, at the same time it has left me thinking.  Judging by the conversations I’ve overheard by the people who live here, it has become very clear to me that I don’t fit in all that much with the world anymore.  They strive after wealth, women, cars, big houses; I strive after relationship with God.  I don’t mean this in a self righteous way, its merely an observation.  Nothing more, nothing less.

I guess I’ve just realized that this season in MI has truly changed me.  A year ago, I would’ve joined in on some of those conversations and participated with enthusiasm.  Not that wealth or everything material is bad, it is very clear to me however that many of these people place all their hope in these things, and what’s worse is that these things define their life and their happiness.  It makes me grateful that I serve a God who brings satisfaction beyond earthly wealth.  It gives me such a drive to share that joy with other people, especially the people here.  It just goes to show that everywhere you go, ministry NEEDS to happen.  The need is different in different areas based on culture, the economy, the people, etc.  Being at the worship service at Vanguard tonight made me realize one thing: No matter what the need or problem is in a given area, or what the culture,  economy, or people are like, the presence and power of God that comes from worshipping and honoring him is the same everywhere, and that gives me a comfort that I can’t begin to explain.  It’s quite beautiful.

All in all, I’d say that today was a win.  I’m enjoying my time in California immensely.  It was such a blessing from God that I was able to come and relax, be refreshed, and enjoy the sun and the company of friends and family.  Tomorrow holds an adventure that can only be described as DISNEYLAND!  I’m beside myself with excitement!  I essentially turn into a 5 year old as soon as I cross that threshold!  Now it is time to sleep!  Goodnight, God Bless, and I hope everyone is doing well!

So I did not go to bed until at least 4am. The next thing that I remeber after that moment was being woken up by Jon because we needed to leave in a half hour. I most definiatly went back to bed and I’m pretty positive we didn’t leave for at least an hour. Not sure, but I’ll say its true. Anyway we went back over to Juli’s today but without Jeremy. (look at his blog to find out why) So we were lead by Juli, our local guide, to In-N-Out Burger where I chose to get a Double-double meal and a Strawberry shake. I apologize for saying this but I’m not super impressed. Best fast food burgers? Sure. But much more than that? Not really. After we go the food we ended up at a parking lot for patients at the HOAG Hospital. Why we chose this particular place to eat is not because of Natalie HOAG-land, but because of a miss communication. That seems to happen a lot in this group. After our exciting lunch we decide to leave and at the same time impatient, angry, old people show up and act like they own the hospital by honking at us. I think the doctor asked them to come in so he could tell them that they were losing their sight…rapidly!

Getting old should be exciting….

Well from there we headed out to Laguna beach. We saw three rabbits, a beautiful beach, nothing but ocean on the horizon, and houses on top of houses along the hill side. When we got down on the beach the 4 of us guys went skim boarding. Jon is pretty good just throwing that out there. I played in the waves with Wil for. . . a short while and then went back on the beach to do some work on that tan/burn:) Jon and Wil went for a walk and directly after they returned we headed out for the house.

At the house I got a little excited. Waiting for us was the fixings for a bar-b-q and me being the man I am grilled up the burgers. We actually shared this meal with 5 people outside the group, well Jeremy’s grandma didn’t eat but whatever. From here we took a litle down time which eventually turned into hanging out in the hot tub. I forgot to mention that at lunch we met Juli’s friend Kyle who lead a worship service at Vangard and told us we could come. I was stoked, however, freakin’ lost started at the same time so we only ended up being at worship for the last song and a half. Stupid! But I will say it was still amazing. I’ll let you know that Kyle has it going on at Vangard at 9:30 on wednesdays at Vangard. Well after that by popular demand we went back to get Frozen Yogurt to night. Oh an Wil didn’t come cuz he is devoted to this blog and putting the videos up so props to him. And this about raps up the evenning. I have been on the computer since and now am posting this. Good night but not really cuz its not 4 yet;)

Anyway today was a good day, probably better than yesterday because we weren’t in the car for more than an hour total. Today started for me at 9 AM when I woke up to Jon spooning me. It was super awkward so I pushed him and pretended I was asleep. I continued trying to sleep for an hour, post spooning, but M.I. has transformed me into the kind of person who gets up in the morning. I think that’s a good thing, but I miss sleeping sometimes.

Once everyone (except Jeremy who spent the day with his grandma who might be the nicest old person I have ever met) was awake and dressed, we headed to Julie’s to meet up. We then went to In & Out Burger which was awesome and not.

Reasons it was awesome: One, it was awesome because the burger was of high quality. Two, it was awesome because there was a man with a small dinosaur, or giant lizard, on his shoulder and he was just walking around with it like it was normal. Not like a tiny iguana either, it was like a baby komodo dragon, and it was on him like a backpack.

Reasons it was not awesome: It was not awesome because my budget for the rest of the trip was cut from twelve dollars down to 5.

Once we got our food we went to a medical center and parked in the patient only parking spots. We got out of our cars and sat on a grassy knoll to eat our food. I felt kind of bad because there were no spots left, but not enough to search for a new place to park.

After eating we proceeded to go to the beach in Laguna Beach, which was probably the most beautiful place I’ve been to California. I’ve heard people say Laguna isn’t that nice, but I have come to the conclusion that those people are either retarded or spoiled. It was gorgeous.

When we got there we found a place on the beach. There were enough people to keep it from being empty, and few enough that we had a good chunk of beach to ourselves for skim boarding. I am getting increasingly better every time.

After skim boarding I worked on my ginger tan some more and was a little bit successful. When I took a shower I was super excited to see the difference in color between my back and buttocks. There was a difference and I was happy.

I know at the beginning of this writing I described what is now happening but several hours have passed since I began and I have left and returned. We went to Vanguard, Julie’s school (one I wouldn’t mind going to), and caught the last 10 minutes of their student led worship service. I wish we had gotten there earlier because it was super chill.

After it was over we stopped by Yogurt Land on our way home, which blew my mind and taste buds away. Allow me to explain. Yogurt Land is a self-serving land of frozen yogurt. It is a land where dreams come true and the price of yogurt/toppings is determined by total weight of the order. It is a place where 3 dollars can satisfy my hunger. I wouldn’t be surprised at all if there is a Yogurt Land in heaven.

Now we’re back at the house and I’m sitting on the couch next to Devin contemplating whether or not I want to go to sleep. I have to get up early to drive Jon, Wil, and Jeremy to Disney Land, and then I’ll probably come back here and sleep. Devin and I decided not to go because tickets aren’t free anymore and they are 70 dollars. We told Jon, Jeremy, and Wil to go tomorrow without us because honestly we don’t care to go that badly, so don’t think that they are being bad friends by going without us. I am actually enjoying the beaches and just the scenery. I’m still not sure what we’re going to do tomorrow but it will be a party for sure, and an adventure. I’m really tired so I think I will go to sleep. Goooodniiight.

-Ryan’s Keys (x3)
-iPod (x1)
-Cell Phone (x1)
-Jeremy’s Cell Phone (x1)
-Jon’s Cell Phone (x1, yet to be found)
-Ryan’s Cell Phone (x1)
-Video Camera (x2)
-Video Camera Charger (x1)

Despite the losing of many objects the day was excellent.

It kicked off with a trip to In-N-Out. We then followed Jon’s sister to a park to eat, unfortunately, our questioning as to where we were going was mistaken for impatience so we ended up eating in a park…..ing lot. To be more specific the parking lot of the HOAG Medical Center. We were being stared at by cars, literally, filled with old people. We didn’t mind though. We just sat on our 3′ by 5′ patch of grass in the middle of parking lot and ate our In-N-Out. After this wonderful adventure we took off again heading to what may be the most beautiful piece of California I’ve yet to see, other then Gazelle. Laguna Beach.

We hung out in a place I think was called Crescent Bay and sat in the sand beneath a giant retaining wall, obviously meant to keep the poor out of the property of the extremely wealthy. I think that the extremely wealthy were worried that their property would be infested with the disease of poverty and thus built a gigantic, Berlinesque wall between their property and the beach. Jon, Ryan, Devin and I took out the old skimboards and headed towards the waves. Being my second day ever skimboarding my experience consisted of a lot of falling or missing the board entirely. But finally, I had my moment of triumph. I ran and jumped on the board riding across the skim exclaiming the word “WOOOOO!” in an obnoxiously high-pitched falsetto. Mere seconds after this event I find myself face down in the sand, out of breath and in pain. I smiled up proud of my accomplishment but then put the skimboard to rest and found a better, less painful way to occupy my time. Jon and I ended up exploring the rocky shores and examining the tide pool where we found one Anemone and zero Starfish. Disappointing.

After Laguna Beach we headed back to the home we are staying at and ate a home cooked meal as barbecued by our own Devin Head. After the food we hopped in the pool, realized it was freezing and then hopped in the hot tub, which I found was a more suitable temperature. There we spent many hours discussing our lives and God.

THEN, Lost came on at nine, and the episode was incredible.

Until next time,

Wil

1. Its warmer than 60 degrees here

2. I can see the sun.

3. In and Out Burger

4. I took a nap on the beach for 2 hours…

5. Palm Trees

In addition to my naps on the beach, we got to go swimming, and I partook in a theological debate in a hot tub for 2 hours. I’ve been relaxing HARD. And yet for some reason, after a day of relaxing, I was SUPER tired!

I think its funny how God speaks in a whole new way when I’m on vacation. There’ something more clear about his voice. It makes me wonder if maybe all the stress I’ve been under back home has hindered me from hearing the very simple, yet comforting things that God has been trying to say to me for the past couple months. He has affirmed me greatly in my study time and in my prayer time since I arrived down here. Devotions in the sun = L E G I T! Either way, it has become clear to me that I needed this trip in more ways than one, and choosing to come down here was one of the best choices I’ve made in a long time. Conversations with friends, relaxation, sun, and God…how could you go wrong??