frolicking.

the word "frolicking" is disgusting.

fro licking. as in licking someone's afro. blegh.

-ap.

never surrender.

everyone needs to go out and rent the documentary King of Kong: A Pocketful of Quarters.

trailer here.

this is the greatest documentary i've ever seen. hands down.

its about the original "Donkey Kong" game and the nerds who compete for the highest score ever. this dude Steve decides that he's going to beat this dude named Bill's 20 year old score: 847,600 or something. oh MAN its good. i'm a Steve Weibe** fan now. plus there are so many "gosh you lead a lame life" moments. super hilarious.

reasons why:

1. it makes fun of video gamers a lot.
2. the greatest villian EVER. i hate him. and he's real.
3. some of the most incredible quotes ever.
4. part of the movie takes place at lake winnipesaukee, new hampshire. (what about bob?)

there are a lot of other reasons. but you should just go see it.

i'm not joking guys. you just should.

-ap.

** - the ENTIRE movie i couldn't figure out how i'd heard this name before and i just got it. I'm in my room watching tv and Steve Levy just wrapped up SportsCenter. phew.

I-35: Highway of Holiness.

yeah its kinda bizarre. and i'm not sure i truly think Isaiah 35 intended to hint at a highway in an undiscovered land 2000 years later. and beyond that, what does it even MEAN that the unclean will not pass over it? because clearly non-christians have both driven on it and crossed it form one half of the US to the other.

its a coincidence and a misinterpretation.

however, praying for 35 days for I-35? or taking the Gospel to some of the not-so-couth establishments on the highway? what's wrong with that? yes, it may be radical, but its just a different approach to evangelism it seems. i guess sometimes what i fail to realize is that these people love Jesus too. and even though they may or may not have misinterpreted something, they're still bringing Christ to the unreached. That's great. admirable even.

and like it says in the video - not all of these people TRULY believe that I-35 = Isaiah 35. i would even venture to say that MOST of them don't. even the lady from dallas that they interview seems somewhat fun about it. i have no problems if thats the case. i think it could be a cool ministry.

but i think we always need to be careful about turning off individuals to Christianity, and i got extremely discouraged when the owner of the strip club in dallas came on and talked about how he doesnt like it when people are forcing their beliefs on others. and while it is admirable to march into a strip club and scream for Jesus, there is always a part of me that knows that yelling at people isn't necessarily the greatest. i dunno. there's a fine line between evangelism and yelling.

however, overall i think this actually has potential to be an effective ministry. misinterpretation? maybe. overly forceful at times? maybe. but if done right and with the right focus - absolutely.

its really difficult for me to support this too. i have a tendency to criticize ministries - try and find what i don't like about them rather than what i do. i think this somewhat relates to how some Christians view one another. even last week i decided i wasn't really comfortable being affiliated with the Catholic church. i think we have a tendency to view ministries unlike our own negatively. (my motivation for not wanting to be affiliated is based on the number of Catholic college students at the bars the night of ash wednesday - not because i think they're wrong - fasting is awesome.) i guess my point is that its important to be careful when we criticize. i like openmindedness.

"if you're too openminded your brains might fall out."

i have nothing to say to that rebuttal.

-ap.

ps - i think cameras make them look more ridiculous than they really are. if i was praying in public and i had a camera shoved i my face recording my thoughts to God - i bet i'd panic and end up looking ridiculous too. it'd be hard to focus i bet. but anyway.

bet on it.

just because i now can:

BET ON IT - TROY


oh zac e. if only we could see you frolicking by a lil pond too.
-ap.

how embarrassing.

seeing basketball players on campus is really fun for me. especially on game days.

we play texas at home tonight, and so far i've seen six different basketball players and one head coach. usually i try my best to throw something their way - encouragement and such - even though it's truly about only 10% about them and 90% that i just want to be friends with the basketball team.

but today its been extremely discouraging. first, i usually sit next to jacob pullin in my 8:30. this morning as i was leaving class i said "good luck tonight bro." turns out he had his headphones in and didn't hear a word i said. strike one.

THE luis colon is in my 9:30. he usually sits in the back of the room though, and since i'm such a seriously great student i tend to gravitate towards the front (joke). i just sit on the other side of the room usually. anyway, today i was amped cause i was going to sit next to him and wish him good luck and maximum playing time and a career high 8 points and 2 dimes. but then he didn't come to class. strike two.

after class i was walking to the coffee shop i am employed at to get something to drink (not coffee - i ended up getting a delicious chai). as i was walking along i saw clent, ron, and andre all walking together. it was just too intimidating and i couldn't do it. call me a pansy, thats fine, but when three prestigious individuals are giggling - its hard to find a place to say hi. especially when they're walking the other way and the talk to them timeframe is about 6 seconds. strikes three - five.

head coach frank martin is a regular customer at radina's (where i work). i was in line getting my previously mentioned bev; he was in line behind me. this was just icing on the already bummed out cake. he walks in and we make eye contact. he's in a head to toe purple sweatsuit and looks slightly goofy. i give him a head nod and say "hey frank. looking forward to the game tonight." he said some nonsense in return about his 'schedule being packed in july but that he could possibly fly in and take a look at the kid at some point.'
he had his EFFING bluetooth phone in his ear. i was borderline humiliated. he got his triple decaf americano and left. dangit. if i'd been working i would've slipped a caffeinated shot in there by 'mistake'. give him a little extra boost for the game tonight.

bring on the cats anyway.

-ap.

episode IV synopsis from a 3 year old.

"but don't talk back to darth vader he'll getcha!"

-ap.

#2 and #7 are most important.

things i've discovered in the last 24 hours:

1. i really like thai food.
2. qtwebgroup.com
3. my badger scar is fading (but that could just be winter's fault)

4. sleeping in/laying in bed later than 8 am is wonderful.
5. next time i have to choose between American Gangster and studying for my Criminal Justice System exam i will select AG because my CJS tests are not as difficult as i expected.
6. my job isn't very enjoyable anymore.
7. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince premieres in 6 months and 28 days.

8. sometimes remixes aren't a good idea (read: Thriller 25th Anniversary is less than satisfactory.)
9. i miss my extended family a lot.
10a. i'm good at boggle.
10b. sometimes i wish i was good at good at something that wasn't really lame (foosball, disc golf, boggle, super smash brothers.)
11. sega rules.

i think thats enough for today. go relish.

-ap.

86 coffee.

i've decided to give up drinking coffee until my birthday.
that's march 14.
that's 33 days*.
probably one of the most difficult things i've ever done.

i'm not doing it for lent. i've never observed lent in my life and i'm not really anxious to do so now. this might be a little bit of a controversial thought process - but i dont really want to be thought of as observing a Catholic tradition. not that i don't respect it and not that i dont believe it has some serious reverence. i simply want to be known as a "little Christ" and not a "Catholic". call me religiously stubborn or closeminded if you like - i'm just not comfortable being associated with Catholicism. this probably goes back to the extremely dense Catholic and/or nominal population in the area of kc i live. a glimpse of what i mean here.

but thats neither here nor there.

i'm doing it because i need some discipline in my life, and i think this is a terrific way to start that (and i think it has actually worked somewhat too - 8 days later i'm sitting in a coffee shop at 7:00 am with my Bible out and i'm throwing down a somewhat spiritual blog for the first time in who knows how long). i'm anxious to see what effect fasting from something so prominent in my life will have on my own spirit.

i wasn't really aware how much i relied on coffee until about day 3 when i randomly fell asleep in the evening for about 2.5 hours. i never do that. i also work in a coffee shop 4 days a week. talk about temptation. just the smell of coffee drives me crazy and this blog is making my mouth water.

i also cannot imagine the joy that will come when the 14th gets here. especially since i'm waking up insanely early that morning to head to GUATEMALA. holler back.

-ap.

* - fav number.

billy walker: over-shadowed.

here's a great article about my favorite:

billy walker: over-shadowed.

gosh i hope he's back at kstate next year. i'm a BWFFL.

that beasley guy is nothing without bill.

-ap.

priest holmes/clent stewart.

relatives? probably not. but they look so similar.