Art Fest is People

I don't go for the art. I don't even go for the food. Both are good, but I'm really there for the people. Over the years, the space behind Mom's booth has become the place to hang out.

I'd never really thought about it until this year when everyone's schedule inexplicably left me to wander the park on my own. It was still neat to see the new vendors and rediscover returning artists, but... it just wasn't the same.

The festival is fun, but it's really only been a backdrop for hanging out.

Hopefully, tomorrow will work out better for that.

Life or Choice, Can We at Least Agree to be Pro-Logic?

On the way to Sioux Falls the other day, I stumbled onto a Christian talk show on the radio. They were talking about abortion clinics that had been shut down in recent days. Various people were calling in with there own perspective of where they saw God at work in this and celebrating victory in the battle for the unborn. Then a woman caller noted that all of the previous callers had been men and went into a bit of a rant. As in, 'how dare they presume to have an opinion about what a woman does with her own body!' (approximate quote. I had a hard time taking notes while driving. [kidding, Mom.])

Then she went off about men forcing their girl-friends into abortion clinics, and the host argued for the fathers that tried to hold them back from the clinic.

It goes both ways, and apparently it's always the man's fault for getting in the way of her choice.

Excuse me. Doesn't the man have some right to say something about the pregnancy that he was permitted to help start? How come it's never, "How dare you let get me pregnant like that!"? Or are the pro-choice women just too embarrassed to admit that they've already let someone else take part in a decision about her body?

Where have I been?

How in the world did it get to be July already? I've not quite been busy enough to really justify my poor behavior in updating here. I've just been enjoying the reduced pressure to get things done. Balancing a part-time job with a part-time internship is considerably less stressful than my last couple summer-employers. I can do the night shift, but... if I can help it, I'm not going back. If it comes down to it, I'd do food service again before going back to nights. ... I seem to be digressing..

Interning for Zach has been great. He went pretty easy on us at first, but is starting to turn up the heat to push us closer to "Real" World temperature. And the whole way, he's been great about giving advice for improvements on our designs/abilities without bringing our existing skills into question.

Ironically, even though I find myself becoming more outgoing this summer, I don't really find myself going out much more than I used to. I like spending time with my friends, but I don't feel the need to see them every day. I hope that doesn't sound cold.. Maybe it never really was the homework, maybe it was just me. It just feels more natural to me to spend most of my evenings in a "quietly at home" manner. Maybe it's just that so much of the 'hanging out' that I see is often a bigger event than I can handle on a regular basis.

I remember one of the guys of MercyMe talking about how they spend their time off. Most of the time they just sit around talking and drinking coffee. They enjoy the occasional amusement park or whatever, but the whole group is generally pretty laid back.

I bet I'd get along great with them.

I've been expanding my skill set these last couple weeks. I've had 3 different teachers lined up to show me around the kitchen. Sarah, Carl, and Laura (in that order) offered to share their knowledge as soon they heard of my desire for more experience. Thanks guys!

I've also been brushing up on my long neglected GameCubing skills, particularly in the Smash Bros. area. I got to show them off just yesterday in a return to Brookings to take on some friends I've not seen in months. (Especially Mark, who's had a knack for being in town [Brookings] when I was busy. Or maybe it's the other way around.)

It's always been something of a match against the masters with these guys, and while I only came out on top once or twice from countless matches, they made a point of noting how I had "definitely gotten better." It was great being able to hold my own until it was at least close to being over.

And no, that's not because I've been spending all my quiet nights at 'home' practicing. I've been doing a lot of reading, and more recently have started trying to learn php coding.

I've got no smooth segue, but Why Men Hate Going to Church has made my list of must read books. My quest into the study of man-ness has taken an unexpected turn. (Stop and think about your average church. Is there anything particularly manly about it? How about feminine? I'll expand on that another time, since I'm already going long here.)

I'd add The Message to the list too, but in a way, it's already there.

Ever since the King James translation of the Bible got to sounding stuffy to the average American, I've seen so many attempts to weed out the 'thee''s and 'thou''s and bring the language up to date. But it always seemed to me that there was always some residue of that 'classic' style that the mind had to dance around before taking it in. The Message is the first that has really felt different to me. It actually feels like reading a book.

That other blog? I haven't forgotten. Far from it really... I've pushed it aside to get other things done, but it's never really left my mind. It seems like there's been increasing pressure from God (via several otherwise unrelated sources) to not let me forget.