Garrett Richardson

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2011-01-13T14:57:00.001-08:00

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Originally uploaded by garrett andrew

Hello! (for the last time on blogspot?)

2009-12-26T01:59:00.000-08:00

GOOD NEWS! I've continued THIS BLOG ON A NEW SITE!

I'm excited to introduce to you:
www.garrettandrew.com

Thanks for following!
Garrett

Lots to share

2009-12-10T16:22:00.000-08:00

Life Updates:
1. Tyrone Wells, Myriad, Urban Rescue concert at Point Loma
2. PLNU Homecoming weekend
3. Thanksgiving: in SLO
4. Christmas Parties @ loma
5. Future of Forestry/Urban Rescue Christmas Concert

The Myriad & Urban Rescue
Loma put on a concert in November where The Myriad led worship in chapel that morning and played a concert later that night. It was a fun night with great music. Really enjoyed taking pictures in one of my first concert settings, really. I'm learning how different it can be than shooting portraits and nature where your lighting various quite a bit on stage. Hope you enjoy some of the shots!

Myriad gear

Jeremy, front man.

Urban Rescue

HOMECOMING @LOMA
This is always a busy and exciting time for everyone because there are so many new faces who have a long relationship with the school. It's pretty amazing to see the faithfulness of those who have gone before us and found themselves returning back to this place with such a grateful heart to share how Point Loma has impacted their lives. I was privileged to lead worship in Homecoming Chapel on Friday with a string quartet that sounded sweet... not to mention the surprise guest who was sitting back stage during the set.

One of the world's most influential leaders in the zoology field is an alum of Point Loma so he brought in a friend from the San Diego Zoo as he spoke in chapel. Yep, that's a Cheetah.

playing with strings

Allison and her roommate Alissa after Al jump roped in front of 1,800 people in the Variety Show. She nailed it, so proud of her :)

Some of my best friends.

Homecoming basketball game

Sea of Lions

For Thanksgiving, the Richardson's headed north to visit my favorite travel destination in California... San Luis Obispo. The best relatives ever live in Los Osos, a small town across from Morro Bay and quite possibly the best kept hidden secret the west coast has ever known, or not known. It was great to spend time with family, rest a bit, and shoot a lot of photos. In a place like the central coast, it's not hard to take decent pictures because beauty is virtually omnipresent.

Pops. Santa Barbara.

Dad trying to reenact the story of Jonah

morro bay, ca

Chipper:
BEFORE

AFTER

aunt cammi, uncle joe & padres

I LOVE THEM!

someday...

rockstar.

Stillness

morro bay sunset

uncle joe's line up

Killer jug band. The real deal.

winter in slo.

Richardson thanksgiving dinner

waves crashing @ morro rock jetty

Seth's new cd cover

Christmas Party @LOMA!
We had an Ornamentation Party in Goose's apartment on campus. It was super fun and a ton of people came!

Emi rocks

Reincarnation of the Virgin Mary

Butterfly bow

Crafts!

Cookie time!

Ugly sweater party

She's crafty...

Christmas Lights

Future of Forestry/Urban Rescue Christmas Concert
Last week, The ROCK Church down the street from loma had a really rad Christmas Concert. Future put on an amazing performance and worshipful moments throughout the night. I had a fun time shooting again for these great bands.

Urban Rescue

Future of Forestry

U2 + Rose Bowl + 100,000 People

2009-11-08T02:22:00.000-08:00

This was easily one of the most memorable concerts I have ever/will ever attend as the stadium filled up throughout the night to equate the largest crowd the Rose Bowl has ever seen. Not to mention, they were all gathered to see one of the greatest rock bands of our generation.

My dad, brother, Allison, and I drove to Pasadena together and met up with our friends Mark Fuentes, Shelby Jenson, Jordan Frye, and Katrina Brown when we got to the stadium. The outside of the Rose Bowl was packed as people were overflowing throughout the parking lot and grassy field. Tents, stages and huge screens were set up throughout the park for pre-concert entertainment. When we were walking around we saw Jon Foreman, lead singer of Switchfoot, and Chad Butler, Drummer, so we talked for a bit. They're super solid dudes. As we were floating through the crowds, Allison and I brushed shoulders with Roy, ex-boyfriend of Pam on TV show The Office. I also saw my boss from Admissions (Point Loma) and other friends from Loma as they were sitting in the section next to us!

Seth. Ready to Rock.

1/2 of U2 Crew.

Walking to Rose Bowl

Dad + Fedora = Rockstar

Jon and Chad

Gettin' ready for Black Eyed Peas

Jordan gets really hungry...

...and likes to eat...

...and enjoys every bite.

Brothers!

Can't wait.

Black Eyed Peas!

Jordan and Kat checking to make sure the stage didn't take off for outer space.

Jordan, Shelby, Mark

"Tonight's gunna be a good night..."

Bowl before U2

Full House

This stage titled, Space Station, took 8 days to build!

360 Tour Stage in Time Lapse (it's worth watching till the end!)

The sea of Red.

Top of Space Ship

This was, as Chad Butler from Switchfoot put it, "Not just a concert, but truly an historical event"

If you want to watch the Live Concert, follow this YouTube link as they broadcast the whole thing: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V4QLFVrZ-fw

U2 Set List: Breathe, Get On Your Boots, Magnificent, Mysterious Ways, Beautiful Day (with a few lines from In God's Country, God Only Knows and The Maker - which is a song by U2's producer Daniel Lanois), I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (The Edge played it with a capo on the 2nd fret, coda of Stand By Me, massive crowd singalong), Stuck In A Moment (acoustic guitar version), No Line On The Horizon, Elevation, In A Little While (Bono changed the lyrics to say space travel turns him on, song finished with last verse spoken by an astronaut in the International Space Station), Unknown Caller, Until the End of the World (frenetic Edge solo), The Unforgettable Fire (Edge pulls double guitar and piano duties), City of Blinding Lights, Vertigo, I'll Go Crazy If I Don't Go Crazy Tonight (stale remix version), Sunday Bloody Sunday, MLK (Martin Luther King tribute), Walk On (with Aung San Suu Kyi protesters on the stage wearing masks of her face, Never Walk Alone snippet at end).

Lastly, I'll leave you with this video of U2 playing "Sunday Bloody Sunday" at the Berlin Wall. Watch for a surprise visit after the Edge plays his solo...

U2 - New Music - More Music Videos

Photo Contest - PLNU

2009-11-02T21:42:00.001-08:00

After taking up photography in June of this year, I've been really excited to experiment with how much joy this type of art can be. I entered into my first Photo Contest recently here at Point Loma taking pictures around campus and was super stoked after I found out they choose one of them. It's a photo of my two roommates gardening one late night so I appropriately titled it, "Mystical Gardening by Night" because it looked really ghostly.

This link will take you to the flickr site where photos of Point Loma are posted each week by a photography Marcus Emerson who takes great shots! I highly recommend you check out his work: http://www.flickr.com/photos/marcusemerson/

http://www.flickr.com/photos/plnu/sets/72157622518247747/show/

"Mystical Planting by Night"

More photos to come! Macbook is on it's way :)

Abandoned Ship

2009-11-01T20:00:00.000-08:00

Hello friends,

I am completely aware of my absence from a blog that I gave so much of my attention to over the summer. Due to some unfortunate computer issues and the busy-ness of life, I abandoned the world wide web. But I will resume a life of blogging from now on as regular as possible.

Catalina Island
At the end of September, I had a sleepless weekend that left me more satisfied spiritually than physically yet a weekend that I won't forget. On Friday, I went to Six Flags Magic Mountain with a ton of Point Loma Students as it was a big annual event for the school that a lot of students go to. I got back to Orange County around 2am and stayed in Newport Beach at my brother's house. I woke up at 4am where I jumped on a boat to Catalina Island where I would meet up with Trinity Presbyterians High School Youth Group. We had a blast all weekend worshiping, playing games, eating good food, and exploring the beauty of the island.

I fell in love with this place.

Weekend Warriors

These are the friends I had the privilege to lead worship with all weekend

Boarding back to reality

I'm on a boat.

Kayaking, La Jolla Cove

The next weekend, Allison and I rented kayaks from the RecRoom here at Point Loma, got some sushi for dinner, and headed for Shelter Island where we would take our tandem kayak for a dip in the bay to pull up next to Humphreys Hotel concert venue on the water. We watched the Beach Boys at night from our kayak for free! It was something I never thought was possible. The next day, I led worship at Las Flores Nazarene in Carlsbad where George Williamson usually leads.

Dodgers vs. Padres
On September 30th, my dad came down to San Diego and we experienced the Ocean Beach (OB) Farmers Market together. It's definitely a must do/see if you're here in diego. Then with my roommates Erik and Jeff and my dad and I, we went to Petco Park in Downtown SD to see the Padres play my Dodgers.

Weekend in Frisco
Later that week, on Friday Oct 2nd, my friends Goose, Jeff, Alyssa, and Allison joined me on the best road trip of our young adult lives. We explored the beauty/uniqueness/diversity of San Fransisco, CA. Our main motivation for making this trip happen was a Bluegrass Festival in the Golden Gate Park which to our surprise ending up hosting 80,000 people that weekend. We saw some incredible music, met some REALLY interesting people, and went on an adventure that we will remember for the rest of our lives.

Leaving San Diego

Driving through the night (arriving in frisco at 3am)

I knew a Nazarene pastor and his family who happened to live a block away from Golden Gate Park (where the festival was held) and they let us, almost strangers, sleep on their living room floor, eat their food, and play with their amazing kids. They are an incredible family and were a great representation of Christ's hospitality to us.

Thank you San Fransisco Transit System. Chasing after buses at midnight is one of my funniest memories of the weekend.

Exploring downtown!

Hello Walgreens Security Man :)

Walking through Golden Gate Park

Goose & Rooster Stage

Okkervil River

My family drove separate and met us for the weekend also.

This man is the reason I drove 400 miles to attend a Bluegrass Festival, Dobro Dan Richardson. I hope nothing more than to be him when I grow up.

We're watching The Steve Miller Bluegrass Band with 30,000 others in a huge sunny canyon.

Dr. Dog absolutely rocking.

Goose and the dogs

Waiting at the bus stop

Every road trip to frisco needs this picture

Nothing beats salt water taffy at the Embarcadero

Finishing our weekend with Clam Chowder Bread Bowls at Pier 39.

"Best weekend of our lives" -Us

Balboa Park

On October 10th I visited Balboa Park for the first time with Allison and explored the Green House Gardens and Museum of Photography Arts. My main motivation for going to this museum was to fulfill a ART100 class requirement but I left feeling influenced and engaged to pursue photography more. Two photographers that caught my eye were: Sally Mann's "Tobacco Spit" and Don Bartletti "Highway Camp". Both are compelling and worth stepping into.

"Tobacco Spit"

"Highway Camp"

Mute Math @ HOB SD

The next day, Allison and I went downtown and found a Thai restaurant to fill us for one of the most compelling concerts any music lover would appreciate. We saw the band MuteMath at the House of Blues accompanied by As Tall As Lions. Such an amazing assortment of sounds, lights, emotions, and enjoyment were experienced that night. Walking downtown after the show was over felt like we were walking through a new world as we walked out of the basement, ears ringing and eyes dilating from the lights, forgetting where we were and at most not knowing where we had parked. What a night of music and good friends who we met up with to experience together.

Mute Math

Ventura Road Trip

To celebrate our midterms ending, my friends Goose, Jeff, Erik, Ben, and I road tripped up to Ventura where Goose is from (as well as dozens of others from Loma). We only drove up for a night as we had Friday Fall Break, but what a beautiful city Ventura is! I want to live there for a season of my life, really. In addition to our mini road trip, we went to the Little Italy Farmers Market near downtown, the (foggy) beach, made one of the BEST homemade dinners (with AMAZING pesto!), saw Where The Wild Things Are (which deserves a FULL blog of thoughts by itself), and had a Art Party. I painted a picture of a banjo with one string and wrote "LIVE Simply" on it.

Foggy Ventura.

Nothing better than being home.

-------------------------------------

I have to admit, the last two months have been some of the best in my life. I have experienced a taste of what life offers us in our youth and I think I've seen a part of what it looks like to explore

that which God has given us.

This prayer by Sir Francis Drake has not only spoken truth into my life in the last two months but has given me strength in the midst of processing what it means to be faithful to the One who made us.

Disturb us, Lord, when
We are too pleased with ourselves,
When our dreams have come true
Because we dreamed too little,
When we arrived safely
Because we sailed too close to the shore.

Disturb us, Lord, when
with the abundance of things we possess
We have lost our thirst
For the waters of life;
Having fallen in love with life,
We have ceased to dream of eternity
And in our efforts to build a new earth,
We have allowed our vision
Of the new Heaven to dim.

Disturb us, Lord, to dare more boldly,
To venture on wilder seas
Where storms will show Your mastery;
Where losing sight of land,
We shall find the stars.

We ask you to push back
The horizons of our hopes;
And to push back the future
In strength, courage, hope, and love.

This we ask in the name of our Captain,
Who is Jesus Christ.

amen.

Jon Foreman Interview - Point Loma

2009-09-10T15:54:00.000-07:00

If you are a perspective student looking at Point Loma, this was an interview that happened at Loma my freshman year.

Old endings. New beginning...

2009-08-27T22:51:00.000-07:00

This blog will entail the following:
-reflections on this summer
-our last little video, quite ridiculous might I add
-highlights of the last two weeks
-lots of shots

Summer of '09 has come to a close.

While still trying to process everything that I was a part over the last 3 months, I felt compelled to share my final thoughts and even use this blog to help me sift through the fullness of what I experienced this summer.

Here's a quick summary of where this 10 week tour took us:
-Hemet, CA :: Hemet Church of the Nazarene (SoCal District Assembly)
-Carlsbad, CA :: Las Flores Church of the Nazarene
-Phoenix, AZ :: North Gate Community Church
-Prescott, AZ :: AZ High School - Camp Pinerock
-Glendale, AZ :: Glendale Church of the Nazarene
-Prescott, AZ :: AZ Junior High - Camp Pinerock
-Nevada City, CA :: Sacramento High School - Diamond Arrow Camp
-Coolidge, AZ :: Coolidge Church of the Nazarene
-Albuquerque, NM :: Retreat
-Roswell, NM :: Roswell Church of the Nazarene
-Ruidoso, NM :: New Mexico Sr/Jr High - Bonita Park
-Phoenix, AZ :: Phoenix First Church of the Nazarene
-Springville, CA :: Central California Senior High - Quaker Meadow
-Victorville, CA :: High Desert Harvest Church
-Big Bear Lake, CA :: Southern California High School - Pine Summit
-Apple Valley, CA :: Apple Valley Church of the Nazarene
-Springville, CA :: Central California Junior High - Quaker Meadow
-Bakersfield, CA :: Ridgeview Community Church

As I reflect on the stories that we created and the laughs that we had, I think about how incredibly blessed I am to have been given the opportunity to play a part in Radiance. Some of my most grateful moments rest in the conversations I had with the team and those we met at camps and churches. To know that God used me in some capacity to help bring hope, renewal, joy, peace, encouragement, and an awareness of God's presence to generations young and old, leaves me grateful for a grace that overflows from a God of forgiveness who continually uses our unworthy lives for His dwelling place.

Worship, Music, & The Church
An interesting observation has caught my attention after working with the church over the years. I've observed what seems to be an overwhelming struggle as the search is on for finding common ground within the church as we encounter a cultural shift that has created for itself arguably one of the most diverse eras in church history. While we have Sunday morning gatherings singing traditional hymns out of a dusty red hymnal and resting in 18th century organ arrangements by Bach, we also have a modern uprising of Christian contemporary music that has expanded throughout various denominations of today but most heavily present in non-denominational gatherings. My perception on this diverse spectrum is that, essentially these different genres and forms of worship music are all purpose driven. They are filled with meaning and understanding that have survived in a church setting spaning across generations. To the extent that people are drawn to the lyrics, melody, or the format of the song in a way that allows them to relate and therefore sing because it resonates with something in their soul. As I stand back and attempt to look through the lens of every age group, denominational background, and musical preference, I begin to see certain individuals that truly desire to sing a song that speaks to them in a unique way.

Now let speak more practically when saying, I've experienced church gatherings in the past where a leader of authority would request songs to be played in the service that are considered modern such as the David Crowder's, the Hillsong's, and the Chris Tomlin's but when I observe my surroundings and those I interact with in a place that is brand new to me, I begin to recognize that a request such as this tends to be a push for what is desired to come in the future. Unfortunately, the heart of this particular congregation showed characteristics that thrive in a more traditional time of singing. All of this to say that I am in a place to view such a wide spectrum of music in the church that it has created a tug between personal views on what is too loud, too slow, too new, too old, too lyric driven, or even lacking in theological thought. As I continue to pursue this passion for leading people into a time of worship through music, I will most likely see this more and more yet I believe our call as disciples is to encourage and uplift those around us. Part of that calling is to equip the Church with an avenue in which they can partake in the act of singing while striving to remain faithful to the ways that Jesus lived. Maintaining a balance between our cultural influences in a diverse gathering is a helpful tool as we seek to impower followers of Christ to encounter a living God in our singing.

Worship at Loma
If you are...
-reading this right now
-want to get involved in worship
-a new student
-curious about info... then this flyer is for you.

Last video of the summer. Editor and Chief: Chris Evans

Untitled from Chris Evans on Vimeo.

Lead Week @ LOMA
This year, I'm leading a Homeless Ministry on campus called Bread of Life. The basic framework of what we do is looking at twofold... 1) We help serve a warm meal 2) We interact, converse, befriend these people. A typical Tuesday afternoon would look like this: jump in a PLNU van, drive to downtown San Diego, half of us walk around the streets handing out sack lunches, and the other half meets in the Salvation Army and serves a warm plate of food that is provided by Mid City Church of the Nazarene.

Skid Row :: Los Angeles, Ca
On August 15-17, all of the student ministry leaders returned to Loma and we headed out on a weekend retreat to LA. For two nights we slept in tents on the top roof of the Union Rescue Mission above Skid Row. This short retreat opened my eyes to smells, sights, and sounds that were each very new to me or a great reminder of what kind of living conditions people are facing in the second largest city in the wealthiest country in the world. As a collective group of thirty urban ministry leaders, we explored the diversity of Hollywood Blvd on a Saturday night, met and dialogged with Ron Benefiel (President of Nazarene Seminary School and great influence on the development of Skid Row during the '80s), received a tour of the major downtown sectors (I learned how to read graffiti), and we went to a Nazarene Church on one of the main corners of Skid Row (I felt like the famous gospel singer, Kirk Franklin was in the house, they were grooving). Overall, it was an incredible experience and I would love to do it again.

Good Morning front yard :: Downtown LA

Looking over the wall from the roof of the Rescue Mission. This is the entrance.

Walking around the streets of LA

Troy on Skid Row

Our home for the nights.

We visited Pink's Hot Dogs and this was a first for me! My guacamole, green peppers, and grilled onion dog lived up to it's reputation.

Last night at the Griffith Park Observatory.

La Jolla Cove :: After a day of rest, we explored Diego a bit.
To the Beach!

My Foreign Spaniard Friend, Kasey.

This is Justin.

Amigos!

Game time.

Buck-Buck never goes away. Played it at summer camps and now at loma.

Justin, head over heals for this game.

Padres Game :: Student Ministries
Downtown trolley. San Diego, Ca

Taxi on the tracks. San Diego, Ca

This is the team, rocking the red.

Leslie y yo.

So, it was the annual "bring your dog to the park" night and I happened to find Beethoveen, or his brother.

I snuck into the pricy seats.

Gaslamp District, Downtown.

The tracks at night.

One way road.

Currently, I'm in a great time of transition as classes begin and schedules start to fill up but it's been a great start to the new year so far. If you're a prayer warrior and are able to remember to pray for me as I enter this 3rd year of college, I would be grateful for that. My prayer is that I would honor God with my time and recognized the blessings He has given me through Point Loma and the opportunity to learn from this incredible community around me.

Thanks for reading!

Enjoy the day,
Garrett

The End is Here.

2009-08-09T01:59:00.000-07:00

I thought I would share some pictures with you to update you somewhat on the lives we've been livin'. I'll blog big in a few days but first, shots of the Big Bear and the Sequoia National Forest.

SoCal Camp :: High School

Chapel was one of my favorite parts about this camp.

Mountain Boarding

This is Tyler. He is a Freshman from Carlsbad, Ca and I stayed in his cabin. Tyler came to camp with really long red wavy hair but decided in the midst of peer pressure to earn some quick cash by shearing off a few pounds from his noggin.

Phase 1: Cutting the Mullet.

Phase 2: Realizing that it's not so bad.

Phase 2: Letting the crowd (and money) motivate him to cut more.

Phase 4: Realizing that it's all gone and so are his peers.

Central Cal Camp :: Junior High
Last week of Camp! This is the game face.

Chris and Todd attempting a potentially tipsy ride in the lake.

This is stingy nettle. At Quaker Meadow Christian Camp you learn really soon that this is not your favorite plant to pick in the meadow.

We went on a lot of hikes!

This is Giovanni. He was a junior higher that we as a band practically adopted this past week. He was our favorite kid so we took him on a hike. Gio found lots of cool stuff.

We made it.

Hiking to a river called the Garden of Eden even though we'll never really know what the real thing looked like.

It is 2am and after a long week of our last camp of the summer, I will head to bed as the this journey comes to an end. Thanks for checking in. Summaries and videos of the summer are to come! Sleep for now.

Love,
Garrett

Hello August :: Post #8

2009-08-01T00:57:00.000-07:00

Day 1 :: SoCal Camp - Big Bear, CA

SoCal Naz High School Camp :: Day 1 from Garrett Richardson on Vimeo.

Here are some videos that I think are worthy of sharing with others!

Post #7

2009-07-27T14:10:00.000-07:00

Enjoy some videos of the summer!!!

Inside Out :: New Mexico Camp

yatzy. from Chris Evans on Vimeo.

Summer Travels

Untitled from Chris Evans on Vimeo.

lovegarrett

Reliving My Youth :: Post #6

2009-07-26T00:14:00.000-07:00

Phoenix First Church of the Nazarene
From New Mexico, we drove to Phoenix and stayed the night in a hotel downtown. The next day we set up at Phoenix First and met some great people who work at the church. Our broken window was fixed by George Williamson's brother, James who came to our rescue and I stayed with a really cool dude from AZ High School camp named Braxton. He had a Ferrite named Diablo. I got to play with a Ferrite for the first time ever. And he liked to run up my shorts.

Going up my shorts & living up to his name.

Phoenix First Church

The most killer Media Shout Tech ever ;)

I hit my head on this sealing like three times!

Quaker Meadow Christian Camp :: Central Cal High School
This past week has been refreshing, entertaining, and eyeopening.

-Refreshing because I was able to revisit a camp that I grew up going to as a camper. A camp where God become real in my life. A place where I wrestled with heavy questions placed on me and asked even bigger ones. As I looked to the future threw the lens of a camper, I would search for ways in which God would use me and I think I might have found it in what I do now.

-Entertaining because we met new friends who invited nonstop humor and excitement. Along with opportunity to meet new people, old friendships were reunited as well allowing us to keep the good times rollin'!

-Eyeopening because who knew on the first night of camp, high school campers would be so hungry for God that they would shout, clap, and jump around during worship because that were so stoked to express themselves before their Father. Eyeopening because adventure was easy to come by and when going on hikes that would leave you awestruck for the beauty of creation.

Here are some pictures throughout the week:

The first night, a band called Attaboy from Indiana played a set. They were legit dudes who love the Lord.

We went on a hike one day.

"King of the Castle"

Chris's Hiking face.

Top O' El Mundo

Games Master/Ninja Warrior

Chris Farley

The Mud Pit

The Return of Buck Buck!

Victoria in the midst of sweaty smashed teenage chicas

I went on another hike to a tree that fell down a while ago during a thunder storm. Lightening struck and took this monster tree down in a flash.

Walking through an avenue of giants

This is King David Tree on it's side

The Roots

Walking on top (or the side) of King David

Chris Farley... I mean... Brent making a fool of himself the excite the hijos before the service!

Getting ready to Rock

Heading down the mountain... only took two hours. Waitin' by the side of the road for our brakes to cool down.

We're in Victorville tonight. Headed to Big Bear tomorrow after we play at the morning service here. Can't wait for SoCal Camp!

Blessings,
GarrettAndrew

Lions, Tigers and Aliens? :: Post #5

2009-07-18T02:51:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends! We just came out of another great week of camp in Ruidoso, New Mexico. We feel so blessed to have been a part of this camp as we have experienced God impact many lives. From incredible camp staff to a rad/hilarious/loving director, we were truly blessed.

. . .

Roswell, NM

Last weekend we stopped in Roswell and played at Roswell First Church of the Naz as we met some great new friends. After the Sunday morning service, before heading up the mountain, we couldn’t miss out on the world renown U.F.O. Museum. Quickly, we learned that everyone who works there has “had an encounter” with an extraterrestrial and their stories leave you with a sneaky grin of great interest yet testy disbelief.

New Mexico | Camp #4 :: High School & Junior High
From Roswell, we headed to the hills. I would soon discover an unknown mountain range where prairies and peaks would surround me and all I'd see for miles is refreshing pine trees lining the brim of the Rocky Mountains. We soon learned that thunderstorms strike every afternoon creating quite the light show in each dark gray sky.

Camp Bonita

Games- Once we arrived at this camp, we found out that they had a Human Foosball court! - Chad and Garrett = Stoked.

Chris, ready to rock.

Team Name: Radiation #1

Katie, ready to enter into the next game playing for Team Radiation #2.

Radiation #1 VS Radiation #2

After hours of dirty, competitive, and intense utilization of rusty soccer skills, Team Radiation #2 became Number ONE!

Victors

Rock Climbing/Zip Line

Katie, waiting to take flight.

Allison flyin' threw the air

"If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball." Bring it New Mex.

Katie & Kelsy.

Good Morning Mate!

Morning Worship Service

Rach and the Carvin are a one two punch.

Not sure if you picked up on it yet but We're actually sponsed by Taylor ;)

Gar loves his H two O.

Service Project :: Weeding

Hello Cabins

Late night Denny's run!

Gotta Love that All American Slam at 12:46am

The first morning before campers arrived, we went to the Den and Rach won a new friend.

Some call him Chad the PLNU Admissions Rep, some just call him Cream Puff.

Represent!!

Wally Yeager. Cannot count the laughs and happiness that this man brought to me this week.

Momma Rach

Worship

Speaker and Pastor of Atascadero Nazarene, Dave Curtiss with Radiance

Learning and Living,
Garrett

ps: go watch this music video. it'll make you a happier person. Coldplay.

NorCal - New Mexico :: Post #4

2009-07-07T18:13:00.001-07:00

Sacramento High School Camp | Camp #3
This was one of my favorite camps when I look back on my travels with the worship band last year. Going into it I was really excited but unsure what to expect because they had to change camp locations and join together with the Junior High's week of camp at the same location. Thankfully, another Point Loma short term travel group was there to play for the junior high and we loved seeing fellow Lomas! Overall, it was a great week of hanging out with old friends and meeting new ones in Nevada City, CA. We had a blast on the last night, my favorite part was looking out and seeing a silhouette of my friend Steve Peterson from the other travel band dancing amongst the high schoolers.

Taking in some shade during the sunny games

Challenging the campers to a dual in a game called iBod.

Worship

Coolidge, Arizona :: Sonic Burger!
Seriously, Coolidge has a special place in our hearts. The people there love on us and care for us year after year. We led worship for their congregation on Sunday morning as well as a night service. We went to a water park on Monday and led worship later that night at a youth event where we stayed up all night playing hide and go seek in the dark of the church building. On Tuesday, we slept in as we were exhausted from the all nighter. Later, we did some service projects for the church and played ultimate Frisbee in 106 degree humidity. Gotta love it!

Sonic :: Coolidge eats it everyday, So did we.

Water Park!

Victoria :: Backflip

Random Kid

Toddiving

chris gettin' crazy

Todd's going down the pipes

the girls :: water aerobics

richwaterson enjoying the day.

threw the trees

On the road... again → Albuquerque, New Mexico

McDonald's... let me introduce you to The Tail.

Albuquerque... What's Up!

This is the middle of the summer for us. During our break between Coolidge and New Mexico Camp, we had a retreat at a house here called, "The Game House." It's properly named that because has a pool table, air hockey, ping pong, and jacuzzi. It's such a sick pad! We've been making big meals, watching movies, reading, playing games, and enjoying rest before we finish off 4 more camps/churches.

George Williamson, our boss, came to visit us on Thursday and as we were driving to the house, the window shattered from the heat! I was sitting in the seat but thankfully no glass fell on me.

We went downtown on Friday night :: Allison is a root beer fan.

Spaghetti never tasted so good.

We had to hit up some Sonic on the drive home (we blame Coolidge for that) :: Lemon Berry Slush hits the spot 60% of the time, every time.

Dr. Evens y yo

Katie&Kelsy

Rachel spotted a frog outside of our house! Possible UFO Sighting?

I took this at the restaurant. It was a legitimate festival in Roswell. And guess where we're headed for tomorrow? Roswell Church of the Nazarene :) STOKED for the UFO museum! haha.

-Garrett

Water Fights, Bus Stops, & Hair Cuts :: Post #3

2009-07-02T18:45:00.000-07:00

Currently, I am finishing the set for tonight's last worship service at Diamond Arrow Christian Camp in Nevada City, CA near Sacramento. Here's what I've got planned for the night, always subject to change: All to You (Lincoln Brewster), Sing, Sing, Sing/Rain Down (Tomlin/Delirious), Marvelous Light (Charlie Hall), Living For Your Glory (Tim Hughes), Hosanna (Hillsong), Inside Out (Hillsong), Cannons (Phil Wickham), Reflection (Jordan Frye).

It's beautiful here. I'm sitting in an outdoor amphitheater surrounded by pine trees and plants. Theirs bears around as well as deer and cougars but we haven't spotted those guys yet. This week has gone great so far! It's been tough to find time to blog as we are busy playing games with kids and preparing the service each night but we've been blessed through and through thus far. Let me update you since the last blog...

Arizona Camp :: Junior High
Unfortunately, many campers caught the swine flu and other illnesses as did some of our band members but we made it through and still managed to have a blast throughout the week.

AZ JR HIGH CAMP :: Week TWO from Garrett Richardson on Vimeo.

Water Games AZ JR HIGH :: allison

Chris sporting his new solar shields

it's called buck buck. think of a heard of cows holding on the other cattle in a straight line. other cows run and jump on top of the cows and try to stick a solid landing. if you land safe on top of the others, you've accomplished your task.

Tug 0' war!

One of my favorite campers! Rocking the bagged arm cast all week, even in water games!!

Beat down crew

Pom, ready to splash some dry children.

Radiance (minus Victoria due to quarantine)

Mic (best camp director EVER!)

Cale (aka seth rogen)

Radiance + AZ staff

We left Prescott, AZ on Friday afternoon and stayed in Barstow, CA for the night. Quite the experience...

Super sketchy rest stop in Barstow.

Bus Story :: Get Ready.

After a restful night in a hotel, we started driving early on Saturday morning and we grabbed some gas before we hit the Mojave desert. Interestingly enough, we encountered some bus problems.

We left the gas station and as a few minutes passed when we smelt something awful coming from the engine. I pulled the bus over and we realized that we had filled up the bus, (I won't say who) with unleaded fuel instead of diesel by mistake.

Turns out this mistake would reroute our schedule for the day. Therefore, we all started calling gas stations, local mechanics, and AAA but let me remind you that AAA does not service buses and that we are in the middle of the desert so there's literally nothing around but a few random communities. It turns out that a random neighborhood just happened to be on the other side of the offramp we were stalled at. Todd, Chris, and I realized that our best bet would be to start asking for help "the old fashioned way" by going door to door, since the iPhone was no longer a valuable resource in replacing our fuel tank as we were running out of options. I spotted a house that was having a yard sale and noticed that the couple on lawn chairs in the front yard looked nice so I went up to them and explained the situation. Even more ironic, they explained that just to the west of us was Edwards Air force base and how we had just approached a jet engine mechanic named George. We jumped in George's car, filled with gas cans as he drove us to another house in the neighborhood. Two more car mechanics pulled up behind us, Chuck and Jason, and made fun of us for a few minutes , then we headed to the bus for some serious work.

After about three hours of siphoning gas, replacing fuel filters, and getting down n' dirty in the Mojave desert heat (103 degrees), Chuck and George helped us recover our bus back to one piece.

He took us to his brother's house (the second house we went to before pimp my ride began) as Chuck's wife had bought two huge watermelons the day before, not really knowing why but they definitely were bought for a reason. As they shared incredible hospitality with us, they fed us, rehydrated us, cleaned us up, and shared about their 39 years of marriage together. They explained how God has been faithful to them in all of their years and how we really reminded them of their kids who have started families now but live far away. The Wilson family and George blessed us more than we could have ever blessed anyone else that day. Through this experience, I began to recognize how God uses our mistakes, failures, and weaknesses for incredible signs of his power at work in us regardless of our falts. We were able to share life with these people for only a few hours but it was in these moments that we saw Christ's love for us, even to the representatives of complete strangers. During a summer where we have prepared ourselves to serve the Kingdom, this day was one blessed us more than we could have known.

We arrived in Fresno later in the afternoon and had a swim sesh/dinner (that was amazing!) at Katie Bunker's house (singer in the band). The boys stayed in a hotel downtown that night while the girls stayed at the Bunker house. Todd wanted to cut his hair so he experimented with scissors firsthand, not the best plan but still called for a night of awesomeness. This was the result:

The beginning

The end :: thetail

We will be packing up tonight as we get an early start back to Arizona in the morning! Pray for our bus safety and all logistical smoothness, rest and good health on our break away from a camp this next week. We're in Coolidge, AZ and Albuquerque, NM this week and will keep you updated as always!

Thanks for reading! Hope you're doing well friends :)

love, Garrett & Radiance

1 Camp Down, 7 To Go! - Post #2

2009-06-20T14:07:00.000-07:00

Howdy everyone! This past week has been a great way to start the summer off. We played at the Arizona High School camp and they seemed to have such a blast! We played crazy games, hung out late, kicked it at the snack shack, and worshiped a lot. It was so rad to watch kids transform in the ways that they did. From the first day, where they were still trying to figure us out to the last night where they were shouting SUPER loud for Jesus. It was a cool moment. Here are some pictures of our week!

Heading to Prescott, AZ.

WeLoveTheBucks.

Hello Prescott!

I'm SOO bummed we're missing this!

Pom Pom.

Todd playing with the Gypsys.

There was a sweet fair going on downtown! Katie Bunker making a good find.

Rachel revisiting her childhood elementary school. Fyi: she's from Prescott.

Chris likes the camera.

Katie Bunk-house

photoshoot at the pomeroy house

Strawberries forever. this is gold after camp food.

momma pom rocks in every way.

family.

Camp Pinerock ::
Spending quality time at the Snack Shack.

Skittles or M&Ms?

Aaron likes to snack at the shack.

Everyday is GameDay at Camp!

Radiance + Camp Staff = Photobooth Shot

pedals&tele

todd&allison rocking sounds&media

aaron.

pom pom

worship.

It's been an incredible way to start off this journey. Thanks for reading and walking with us in thought and prayer.

lovegarrett

Radiance - Post #1

2009-06-12T23:29:00.000-07:00

Currently, I'm sitting in a Crown Plaza hotel near downtown Phoenix, AZ enjoying a break from the heat in this refeshing air conditioned room. For those who don't know... this summer, I am traveling with a worship band from Point Loma Nazarene University playing at camps and churches throughout California, Arizona, and New Mexico for about 10 weeks. The group is composed of: Rachel Pomeroy (Bass), Victoria Watts (Electric), Chris Evens (Electric), Kelsy Richardson (Vocals/Keys), Todd Clayton (Sound Tech), Katie Bunker (Vocals/Percussion), Aaron Villegas (Drums), and Allison Waters (Media Tech). We left Loma today and couldn't been anymore ready to start this journey together.

Highlights of the Beginnings:

-Reuniting with people I am starting to call family

-Falling asleep to the waves again

-Getting stoked to worship with this group of people

-Taking our first excursion ... to Hemet. Even though it's Hemet, nothing beats the first road trip

-Leading worship for some of my most respected mentors who reflect Christ to me

-"Working" from 7am-9pm everyday... yet loving it.

-Running/Sitting/Thinking on Sunset Cliffs as the sun takes another dip and the sky becomes dark again

-Late night burrito runs!

Our Send Off Service at PLNU

Already a Scottish Rockstar!

Settin' Sail for the Desert. And yes, those are individually homemade pillow cases crafted but non other than Rachel the Great.

Hope all is well! More to come! Thanks for reading.

xoxo
Garrett

Welcome to the family Rebel!

2009-05-31T00:22:00.000-07:00

I've been wanting to invest in a an SLR, a nice camera, for a few years now and finally went for it. Last week, arriving in a small cardboard box was a shipment from Arlington, Texas postmarked with my name on it. If you're interested, I bought the Canon Rebel T1i. I'm pretty sure I like it so much that It'll be sleeping next to my pillow every night of the summer.

Anyways, I'm sitting in an on campus apartment at Point Loma, listening to Explosions in the Sky (it's a band mom, don't worry... the navel base isn't bombing Loma) ... it's 12:25am and I'm waiting for time to pass a little faster because I'm picking up Allison at the SD airport in the morning after being in Boise for a few weeks now. In the meantime, I'll post some photos I took for fun experimenting around the house...

This is totally still hanging on the walls!

Playing badminton in Welch's backyard

Happy 20th Welch!

Training starts tomorrow with the summer ministry worship band! So STOKED! More to come :)

garrett

Life lately...

2009-05-21T20:26:00.001-07:00

This blog is all pictures... iphone, canon, point and shoot... snapshots of life that haven't been posted yet. Enjoy!

Walking back to my room from the caf.

Padres Games!

Softball game. Point Loma vs. Cal Baptist

Knott's Berry Farm with Allison, Jordan & Katrina

Post eastor... my mom sent them off right, sorry J.

Balboa Island, Newport Ferry! Allison was stoked that we were in the car and floating across the harbor on a boat!

Long boarding streets of Pasadena

Palm tree with no where to grow

Urban Rescue Ep came in the mail!

Dr. Wright's New Testament class: He will keep you on your toes! This time, he traded clothes with Dustin to explain an analogy.

Red Bull Air Show: Downtown/Coronado

Hanging out in Ocean Beach. Acai Bowls!

Spending quality brother time getting sushi in Newport. On the right (in between the booths) are conveyor belts carrying rolls of sushi, you see one you like, you eat it!

This is the happenings of the Topanga Canyon Fiddle Festival near Malibu. I know what you're thinking... "Garrett... you went to a Fidel festival?" Yes, yes I did. The fam and I last weekend. Imagine Knott's Berry Farm but it's the real deal. Groups of folk musicians clump together and jam!

Dodger Game! With friends & Dad.

Lastly, watch this video. Now introducing 50's Pop:
THE WALTZ

Thanks for checking in!
Garrett

Everyone Gets Hungry.

2009-05-05T00:55:00.000-07:00

If you discovered this blog through Point Loma Nazarene University's Admissions website because you were interested in what it looks like to be a PLNU student through the eyes of one, than this blog entry is for YOU. The other day I answered a few questions for a friend about student ministries on campus and because I put so much emphasis on answering them well, I felt it was appropriate to utilize them in my blog seeing that this is a Point Loma sponsered ministry and that I'm stoked to share that I'm co-lead it next year as well.

Here is a break down of a homeless ministry I serve on once a week:

What is the Bread of Life?
- A student lead ministry at PLNU that meets every Tuesday night to drive downtown and serve the homeless through the giving of food, clothing, and engaging in conversation.

What did you do while there?
- I drive the 15 passenger van and serve at the Salvation Army after I drop off half of the group on the streets. At the Salvation Army, I help carry the food in, prepare the drinks, serve the food, refill drinks, and sometimes pass out the clothing. At the end, we usually pray all together, debrief, and head back to campus.

What is a particular meeting/time that has impacted you greatly?
- There was one night in particular that I remember left an impact on me and it occurred in a way that I had not necessarily planned for. After dropping of half of the group at the Salvation Army, I decided to join the group that passes out sack lunches on the streets because it seemed like they needed a bit more help that night. As time passed by, I meet some really interesting people who shared stories that you only hear on the streets. It was coming close to the end as we only had one lunch left to pass out. We were struggling to find one last person trusting our faithful leader Doug as he directed us from street corner to street corner in search for this one last empty stomach. We were growing restless and started heading back toward the van when I peered across the street and saw a blurry figure in a dark alley and motion the group to head toward it in case we could finish handing out our last lunch bag. It ended up people a very lonely and scared homeless man who was trembling in fear and confusion as we began to introduce ourselves and offer support and comfort to him. He began to share how he was in a state of deciding whether or not to jump off the Coronado bridge that night. He admitted to losing his mind and feeling empty and worthless. We prayed for his thoughts, improvement on his battered physical body, and that God would begin to work in his heard bringing him a hope and confidence as a beloved son of God. This experience was one that I will never forget because it revealed the power of placing yourself in a position to encounter people who are desperate for a smile, encouragement, and hope for another day. I might never see that man named Hal ever again but our hope is that God is in the midst of all that we do and he was at work that night.

Did it change your way of thinking?
- Yes, my heart has grown to help those who lack simple needs and who are longing to be heard.

Why is it important for college students to be apart of ministries such as this one?
- These ministries will shape you into one who is able to see the pain and the heartache that exists in this fallen world while recognizing the promise of finding peace and hope in the risen Christ Jesus. Because of this, we become more grateful for the simple blessings we have of shelter, food, transportation, education, relationships, family, etc. I am humbled every time I participate in this ministry.

What can PLNU as a whole do to help?
- Free yourself of any other burden one night a week and simply be present at these gatherings. You never know what God might do in your heart. If this is unattainable, we always enjoy clothing donations.

Thanks for reading into one area of my life!

Have you have a great May day,
Garrett

Urban Rescue EP!!

2009-04-02T15:41:00.000-07:00

I just got back from my friend Jordan's house after listening to his new EP and it is incredible! They wrote some really fun songs and did such an awesome job in the studio with them. I want to encourage you to support them as much as possible because they are two of my favorite people who I met in my first year here at Point Loma. They deserve every success they accomplish and I think you'll really enjoy their music!

Urban Rescue is releasing their 7 track EP on April 21!

Check out their single "Symphony"
http://www.myspace.com/urbanrescue

lovegarrett

The Second Word

2009-03-29T01:21:00.000-07:00

In Friday's chapel, appropriately during this season of Lent, we focused on the seven last words of Jesus as he made his way to the cross and eventually the point of his last breath. After the scripture was read, a reflection was read in response to the word of Jesus. I spoke to second word:

THE SECOND WORD
One of the criminals hanging there threw insults at him: "Aren't you the messiah? Save yourself and us!" The other one, however, rebuked him, saying: "Don't you fear God? Here we are all under the same sentence. Ours, however, is only right, for we are getting what we deserve for what we did; but he has done no wrong." And he said to Jesus, "Remember me, Jesus, when you come as King!" Jesus said to him, "I tell you this: Today you will be in Paradise with me."
Luke 23:39-43

Reflection:
When we carry pride like a disease, we are placing the burdens of this world on our shoulders even when we feel certain that our way of living is of greater value than that of a humble King who came before us. This lifestyle is one that walks through life’s consistent rhythms without ever considering why we move and find our being in Jesus refusing to recognize that we are worshiping the created and not the creator. Even during those moments when one’s world seems to crumble before one’s eyes, losing everything and feeling lost and alone. What does hope look like for those who continue to clench tightly to their pride? Does this pride simply disappear when the prideful are no longer filled with the confidence that they once carried with them or does it take full surrender to a life that is in Christ?

Until we fully recognize that we are all simply children, brothers and sisters, sons and daughters, living under the same roof, under the same rules, loved by the same father, treated equally for the ways we live, we will never be able to fully fulfill the life that Jesus Christ came to save us from.

When we place ourselves in postures of arrogance or forms of idolatry we are setting ourselves up to live similar to that of the criminal hanging there next to Christ, insulting him in his very nature and hindering our ability to grasp the fullness of a life of humility and humbleness.

When we remember the hope that rests in a King who carried the cross in order for our hearts to be radically transformed, we will be ready to receive the greatest gift of all … that the Son of Man would lay his life down for his children in order for us to one day walk with him in Paradise.

Spring Break:: Boise, ID - San Diego, CA

2009-03-22T12:20:00.001-07:00

It has been some time since I last visited this outlet to share my life but as I reflect on the past month or so the only excuse I can think of is that I've been sharing my life in other areas outside of the tech world. But here I find myself sitting in Panera ready to indulge in some tasty food and highlight some good times I've had lately!

As a student taking 17 units, working 20 hours a week, trying to maintain healthy relationships, and participant of extracurricular activities/ministries I struggle to decide what is a better way to live, upholding a full plate of busyness feeling overwhelmed yet accomplished and proud of achieving that which I do or living simply with a busy-less lifestyle that is free of crammed calendars and open ended giving room to unexpected opportunities that might come my way. Whatever that balance looks like... I'm looking for it... call it a search for happiness, a discovery to find your self, a fight for fullness.

Spring Break was my outlet of rest, freedom from busyness, my journey of discovery. Allison and I flew to Boise, Idaho on Friday March 6 out of San Diego Airport (the easiest freggin' airport west of the mississippi). Her parents picked us up that night on we hit the slopes via inner tubes the next day. Boise is located in a valley surrounded by mountain ranges and leading up to this trip, I was tempted to bring my snowboard and gear but it was too tricky. Anyways, toobing was a blast because there was snow everywhere and we were surrounded in God's beautiful creation but part of me wanted to go find a punk teenage boy and strap into his snowboard to take in a few runs down the powdered slopes at the ski resort because the snow looked great! The week consisted of a lot of driving around the city of Boise, eating at good restaurants (my favorite was sushi night!), sleeping in & making breakfast (acai bowls, bacon, chocolatechip pancakes, eggs etc... we went all out!) going to the movies, and hanging out with old friends.

Here are some shots throughout the week:

Downtown Boise at sunset

Spending a day in the city!

Boise River BSU has faithful fansThe famous BLUE turfHappy to be homeWith every week of rest requires a little exercise... adventuring through the hills!

Road Trip :: Boise to Point Loma= 4 Days, 1250 Miles, 24 hours in car, domination of 2 cross word puzzles and unlimited conversations/laughes/stories about life.

Day 1 :: Boise, ID - Elk Grove, CA

350 Miles of this . . .

On the road againFirst time to Tahoe!

We stayed with my good friend Justin Wright who traveled with me last summer playing drums for the band. He cooked amazing food for us, showed me his beat laboratory and let me sleep in his room. Thanks Justin!

Day 2 :: Elk Grove - San Fransisco - Monterey - Big Sur - San Luis Obispo

Al and I decided to reroute and see what the city of San Fran had to offer! We took the 80 west from Sacramento to the bay area and enjoyed the sights.

The fog rolling in through green hills San Fran Bridge to the city

Where the Giants play... GO DODGERS! The Embarcadero (tourist hotspot)Pier 39 The BoardwalkThis one's for my left wing friends!

If you want to know a fun fact about Allison, know that she has a huge fear of whales (specifically the Narwal, but don't tell her I blogged about this haha). When we were walking back to the car across the bridge, I strategically waited to take this picture until this good looking mural popped up in the background. It wasn't long until she realized why I was laughing hysterically after I snapped this shot... she wasn't too happy about my stealthy placement!

Before:

After:

From San Fran, we drove through San Jose to Monterey and drove down CA-1 through Big Sur. If you haven't heard much about this drive, you need to know that it is easily the most beautiful parts of the west coast with towering mountains overlooking the ocean. We went 3 hours out of the way for a reason!

It got a little windy...

Morro Bay
Adventures with Uncle Joe

From San Luis Obispo, we drove to LA and San Diego the next day. By far, it the longest road trip I've ever taken and such a great Spring Break, I won't forget it! Thanks for reading friends.

I hope your days are full of grace and peace as you continue to journey in the creation of our Lord!

Blessings,
Garrett

It's that time of the year.

2009-02-19T13:30:00.000-08:00

The last month has been an interesting one with classes keeping the pace of life consistently continual and the balancing act of planning worship sets, working for the Admissions office, and being a good boyfriend has been challenging but good in so many ways. Honestly, the month of February has been a blur for me personally but overall, I've been enjoying life. I've come to see that that is ideally what's most important.

Two Mondays ago (feb. 9), my girlfriend started campaigning for the office of Vice President. This position would ideally represent the whole student body through a student forum held once a week along with facilitating the voice of us students through different channels of communication. So it's kind of a big deal and can be stressful to think about sometimes.

I helped make her posters which have been among the sea of eye catching advertisements around campus. Here are a few:

This is the one with me on it

This one is my friend Molly

The concept behind her poster was to show a representation of students who agreed would support her campaign. We made a total of 45 different posters and each one had a new person on it that said "I'm voting for Allison."

The polls close today and we'll find out tomorrow if she got it. Basically she's running against a well known Junior named John Penner who is similar to Allison in some ways but they are both very different in their ways of leadership. If you are a political junky, (like my friend Justin) you can read more at: http://www.facebook.com/home.php#/group.php?gid=62950448472&ref=ts

Here are some absolutely classy shots that I got during this process that I thought you would enjoy. Many of them are our friends. If you're reading as a perspective student, this is what Loma is like on an average day...

Grant taking the vespa out for a ride

Casey enjoying a college kids' energy drink on a rainy day
Taylor is my RA. He lays it down on the drums.
Austin listening to some tunes as he heads into chapel
Cammi has many talents
Billy looking awesome amongst the pine needles

Volpi's uniqueness never lets me down

Ben Tiner. This kid never sleeps.

Hope you are having a great week!
Garrett

Oh Enero!

2009-01-25T11:01:00.000-08:00

January... has been an interesting month and yet a good way to start a new semester. It's weird to think this is my fourth semester of college already... it's going by FAR too fast! Anyways, let's talk about the month of enero (january). I feel like listing them in bullet points simply because most people like bullet points right? I will elaborate from there on...

January 4-11 ::

- Snowboarding in Mammoth

This picture was too good to leave out from your blogging eyes: My brother in a gondola in mammoth.

- Picked up Allison at LAX after 3 weeks in Boise

- Went to an art show in Fullerton: My brother plays stand up bass with a few friends who have started their music career through their songwriting and this night he played with his friend Ryan Welch, Tim, Cory Adams, and my Dad in front of a full house are artsy friends. The room was honestly packed. Fun night!

- Drove to San Diego to start school...

January 11-18 ::

- Started classes: This semester I'm taking 17 units. First time for everything! Here are my classes... World Literature (at 7:30am.. ), Christian Tradition (with an awesome prof), World History (my class looks out at the ocean!), Spanish II (Se habla espanol?), Voice Class (time to brush up on the pipes).

- Gave my first tour of PLNU on monday in over a month. Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays at 10:30am. I'll give you folks a tour!

- Drove a van to The Salvation Army in Downtown SD to feed hungry people

- Lead worship in Time out for the first time in 4 weeks.. really nice to be back in the swing of things.

- Played in Chapel on monday and got the call to play on friday at 7am that morning...

January 18-25 ::

- Kayaking: Rented Kayaks from the Rec Room on Sunday and made a day of it in the La Jolla Cove. Allison and I rented a double Kayak and right before I went to purposefully tip us over at the end of the day, she yelled, "GARE, SHARK!" We were floating above 8 Leopard Sharks within 40 feet of the shore in the cove. They were at least 4 feet long! Glad I didn't tip us ;)

- We drove all the way to downtown and realized that I left the ors on the shore in La Jolla Cove

- I had a really raw and genuine experience of worship in the Time Out service on wednesday night. A full band played with me and the set was:

1) You're Beautiful- Phil Wickham

2) Hosanna- Hillsong

3) Beautiful Lord- Leeland

4) Glory In The Highest- Chris Tomlin

5) Beautiful One- Tim Hughes

6) Rain Down- Delirious

Obviously the theme of the night had an element of God's beauty and seeing Him through the eyes of our Creator. My friend Kasey just returned from studying abroad in Costa Rica last semester, which I highly recommend in college and something that I really want to do, and he spoke on the love that God has for us and how we are shown that love through the natural world everyday.

- Allison and I ate at a really great Thai Restaurant called Spice and Rich Thai Kitchen in La Jolla the next weekend and after saw Slum Dog Millionaire after. It was really well done. Deserves many awards.

- Skating = Sprained Ankle. Went long boarding with some friends on Saturday and the first hill we bombed, I went straight down, getting WAY too much speed and took a wide turn before hitting a major street because there was a good amount of loose gravel on the inside turn. I couldn't make the turn in time and ended up running into a curb that launched me across the divider. The bottom of my foot took a pretty bad hit against the edge of the curb seeing that it was the first point of contact to cause any type of slowing down. So this past week I've been either on crutches or hobbling around but nonetheless, I'll make it past the bruising and swelling.

This week has been tough academically, physically (FOR SURE!), and spiritually. God has been teaching me about His character through life and wise people sharing their wealth of knowledge with me. And here I am on Friday afternoon so thankful for the weekend. My friend Kyle came down to visit for the day so we're going to do some exploring so I gotta run but I hope you're all doing well :)

grace and peace

Ps: if you are lactose intolerant or know someone who is, tell them not to eat pizza even if they take lactose pills beforehand. Es no bueno por el estomago!

:: So this is the new year ::

2009-01-08T19:40:00.000-08:00

Hello Friends!

I have some fun shots that I have been hiding from this good ol' blog for quite some time. Let me introduce to those who are not very familiar with what goes on in my dorm during the holidays . . .

-Hendricks Hall Christmas Party 'O8-

Timmy, Kristen, Casey

The Story Telling Room:

Doug, Goose, Porch.

Dr. Wright

Ol' Saint Nick

:: Mammoth Lakes, Ca ::

This past Sunday, a group of friends and the fam left for a week of boarding & exploring. We had a blast and the snow treated us well. One of my favorite moments was watching my brother fly down the face of one of the steepest runs at 11,000 feet on his stomach with his face in the snow for at least 400 feet. Oh the laughs we had, the food we ate, and the back country we shredded. This one's definitely going down in the memory bank!

The road that promises powder

Cruisin' in the FJ

Sleepy Timmy

Cammie, Nick, Timmy, Me, Cory, Molly

Our playground

The run Seth saw face first for 400 feet

Cory going Big

The Crew

The Richardson Fam

Hope you're enjoy life!

Gare

Being home for the holidays.

2008-12-27T12:18:00.000-08:00

Hello my friends. It's been some time since I last wrote. To be honest, I'm starting to believe or at least understand the idea of writers block... but I guess the proper term should be coined bloggers block. Here are some thoughts that will hopefully break this cycle.

The expression "Happy Holidays" rubs me in a funny way. I don't really know why or how to explain this feeling but when someone grants me this simple wish, I can't help but wonder... why not "Merry Christmas" instead? Now, I fully understand that it is politically correct to say this to someone you are not very familiar with because if this person doesn't celebrate the season of Christmas, you wouldn't want to centralize this celebration on everyone. For example, if I was Jewish... I wouldn't go around telling everyone "Happy Hanukkah" because not everyone celebrates Hanukkah. I also realize that people might be combining Christmas and New Years but part of me wants to keep them separate.

I think the root of my thoughts come from a somewhat conservative view. At times I worry this world is slowly starting to leave out the unique remembrance that is Christmas. To think of Christmas and New Years' both being just holidays isn't how I want to conform my thinking of this sacred piece of history. When you think about the things time can bring... happiness, unity within a family, peace, joy, celebration, reflection... and look at how the majority society has began to look this time, two thoughts come to mind. Either, society overall is either caught up in the materialism and anxiety of an annual gift exchange and reason to not work for a few days, or we live in view of the overwhelming blessing and eternal gift that a powerful God would come down in the form of a hopeful child. Is it really that black and white though? The conflict we face and will continue to face is how do we balance our cultural traditions for the season with our beliefs that a child came to rescue a world in need of a Savior. Don't get me wrong, I love the idea of taking time out of our daily routine to buy a gift for people we care for but when the sacrifice spent for people overrides the sacrifice we are called to offer up as a gift before our King, the importance of this season begins to evoke emotions that are much more sacred than just another holiday.

I hope this new year challenges you to wrestle with your faith and find truth and peace in a life that is worth living with purpose and passion.

Grace and Peace

Common Threads, Coldplay, and the Central Coast

2008-12-04T09:59:00.000-08:00

I have the window open to catch up on my Lost episodes so I'm ready for season 5 in January but my instinct tells me that I've almost abandoned this blog thing for quite some time. In case you were wondering since last writing... I'm still learning how to balance life. I'm so thankful for the break Thanksgiving though. I honestly couldn't ask for a better week off. I have quite a bit to share... I'll start with this:

Small Group Communication Class :: Common Threads Advertising Campaign

- This semester, I'm taking a class called Small Group in my Communication degree and the purpose of the class is basically teaching us what a mature small group looks like within the context of interaction among people who come together for a common goal in mind. We chose our 6 person group at the beginning of the semester and were assigned to create a product or service which would adhere to the PLNU community. We then created a business similar to that of a Buffalo Exchange where we would buy and sell clothes as a way to recycle the clothes that people don't want anymore as well as help people find clothes that seem appealing for cheap because they're usually used. My main job for the group was to advertise the business which included coming up with a themed way to visually portray our service to the public through flyers and a commercial. Our company name was Moving Forward and our clothing exchange store was called Common Threads.

Common Threads Flyers:

We decided to make ourselves a non-profit where the money we make after expenses for overhead would go straight to PLNU Student Ministries i.e. Bread of Life- the homeless ministry I help with on Tuesday nights at the Salvation Army Downtown. I wanted to find a creative way to portray our two main goals as a business: 1) to offer fashionable apparel 2) to help out those in need.

Here's my group

Some friends of mine went to OB a few weekends ago to shoot the commercial. I snapped some shots for the flyers. Here are some pictures of the day:

Thanksgiving :: Coldplay & SLO

For the break, Allison came with me and the family to San Luis Obispo to visit my Uncle Joe, Aunt Cammi and cousins. But we decided to start the beginning of our adventure of with a bang. We saw Coldplay at the Honda Center (the Pond) in Anaheim. It was by far the best concert I have EVER been to. The best adjective I have to describe it was that it was epic. I feel like I attended he biggest and happiest party on earth. Everything that I had within me during every song wanted to dance. Thanks Coldplay. The group was Allison, Travis "sound board master" Cook, Kendle Johnson, Jordan Frye, Katrina, and friends from Vanguard.

Here is the set list:

1. Life In Technicolor

2. Violet Hill

3. Clocks

4. In My Place

5. Speed Of Sound

6. Cemeteries of London

7. Chinese Sleep Chant

8. 42

9. Fix You

10. Strawberry Swing

11. God Put A Smile Upon Your Face (live remix version)

12. Talk (live remix version)

13. The Hardest Part

14. Postcards From Far Away (piano instrumental)

15. Viva La Vida

16. Lost!

17. The Scientist (acoustic)

18. Death Will Never Conquer (acoustic - Will singing)

19. Viva La Vida (remix interlude)

------

20. Politik

21. Lovers In Japan

22. Death And All His Friends

-------

23. Yellow

24. The Escapist (outro)

During...

... after.

After a night of Chris Martin serenading us with his British vocals, Allison and I jumping in the car with my brother and his girlfriend for a week in San Luis Obispo. We drove all over the central coast seeing some of the most beautiful coastal spots in California.

- Montana de Oro -

- Big Sur -

My Dad

Daddy

aunt cammi and girlfriend

good ol' fashion rock skippin'

- Cayucos -

(look closely)

- Elephant Seals -

- Morro Bay -

my dog, chipper.

:: Cheap Gas Prices = Drive to Disneyland ::

$23.98 to fill the Volvo. Thanks Obama!

A-doggy

A - to-the - R

Sorry Al, but I handled you pretty good (even though she cheated by spinning our spaceship in circles so it was hard to shoot!)

I'll finish this one with a sunset from my dorm... doesn't really get much better.

Thanks for reading. I hope you're all enjoying a warm cup of apple cider right about now!

Cheers,

Garrett

Soon to come.

2008-11-25T12:20:00.000-08:00

Howdy. I will post a new one very soon and it will be huge.

But for now, listen to the new Coldplay EP.

garrett

Week 3: Learning how to balance

2008-11-17T00:14:00.000-08:00

First Day of School ::

It's almost hard to believe that this semester is somewhat coming to a close. College goes by way too fast PEOPLE! I came across these pictures the other day and thought I would share them with you. They were taken on the first day school this semester during and after chapel.

Our new chaplain Mark Carter

Carter

The sea of students flooding onto Caf Lane

Free coffee and bagels!

Balance ::

These next few weeks are the going to be the most stressful chunk of the semester where projects, papers, and exams begin to pile up... yet the things I have been doing the whole semester (playing music, working, hanging with friends and loved ones, going to concerts and getting sushi) do not cease to slow down either. So this leaves me faced with some sort of a moral dilemma. Every college students' battle: learning how to balance.

If feel like I need to acknowledge the fact that I strive to take on the role of a student above all things. This paints a clear picture of how my time should be spent yet my passions in life that allow me to create space for self expression and a well rounded perspective on this world are what fuel me to live happier and pursue what is good. I could now tap into the fact that responsibility plays quite a large role in the midst of all this. Even to the point where this sacrificial lifestyle of cracking the whip on the books prepares us for the things in life that are to come. This sacrifice might mean skipping out on work early to see your son throw the first pitch in his baseball game. Or perhaps more of a nagging obligation, working on the weed infested backyard even though you want nothing more than simply to sip lemonade while lounging in a floating pool chair because it's the middle of a hot summer's day.

A verse that I've been challenging myself to wrestle with lately within the context of learning how to comprehend the relevance to my life for months now comes from the words of Paul when he says to the Romans, "Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God’s mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God – this is your spiritual act of worship. Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – his good, pleasing and perfect will.”

Obviously this passage unfolds endless hours of blog posts and thoughts but the simplicity of this verse in the idea of our bodies being offered as living sacrifices as a call to worship teaches me that my worship to God is, in its most basic form, the way I live my life every single day. In my waking. In my sleeping. In my hurting. In my healing. In my resting. In my working. In my thinking. In my speaking. The sacrifices I make to put God at the head of the throne is how we are invited to worship. It's not just through a song or an art form. Worship was designed to come from the inner core of how we are radically living our lives.

Urban Rescue ::

On Friday night, my friends in Urban Rescue played here at Loma. Here are some shots of them. Enjoy!

Urb :: Rec Room

Jordan

Tucker

-gr

ps: I went to an Episcopal church this morning. Super interesting experience. I encourage you to check out a denomination you're not familiar with. It'll rack your mind and make you think outside of your shell.

Week 2 :: Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe

2008-11-09T18:42:00.000-08:00

Well my friends... it was that time of year again. The night where we as humans are allowed to transform into the thing that deep down inside, we have yearned to become all year round but we choose not to because society would judge us. On October 31, 2008 the world was finely given the freedom to dress up in that identity that is, their aspired alter ego. I did the honors by taking the Jason Mraz concert attendees by storm and decided to cloth myself (along with my incredible sidekick & hopeful full time feline as a future career) in a full ensemble, from mane to paw, as a Lion. This my friends is what Halloween is all about.

These pictures are the most accurate representation of the lion family according to many, many educated scholars in the ivy league collegiate school system of sound learning and preparedness to enter into this highly esteemed group of friendly felines.

Baby Lion cubs

Ant-Lion

Lion Fish

Lion Gate Bridge (Vancouver, Canada)

Golden Lion Tamarins

The Classic Lion King

Recently discovered ancient Lion statue washed up on a foreign beach front.

Lion statue overlooking canal in Sweden

In most seriousness now, it really was a fun night. Allison and I went and saw Jason Mraz at the Open Air Theatre at SDSU. He definitely showed off his skills on stage. Here's a few pictures at Point Loma before the night.

Hope you have a good week my friends!

love,

Garrett and the Lion Family

Week 1: Yo tengo la alegría en mi corazón!

2008-11-01T18:01:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I went to Rosarito, Mexico with my brother's church. It was my first time to the city of Rosarito after having been to Tijuana and Mexicali for house building and VBS trips over the years.

We arrived at Rosarito Calvary Chapel on Saturday around noon and went grocery shopping for the dinner we were going to prepare that night. Then we headed over to an orphanage ran by a man and his wife who are both Christians and who came across as the nicest most humble people I've met.

The children we were visiting have come from homes where their parents have either abandoned them or got in trouble with the law and are currently incapable of raising children.

The ages ranged from about 5-15 from what I could tell. It was my first time to an orphanage and so cool to interact with them (regardless if my spanish was poor, it was good enough to converse with a girl named Kenya for a good 20 minutes, 2o minutes! Yeah! ps: we both had a test on monday, mine was a mid term in spanish so our conversation was the perfect study guide... haha).

Kenya and Allison

I met a kid named Jose and he had a hard time understanding how to pronounce my name so with his squirt bottom, I helped him spell it out in the dirt. His friends crowded around and tried hard saying, "Garrrrit?... Garrrret?..."

After lunch, my brother started playing some songs in spanish. The kids were surprised that a tall white guy with a huge fro could sing songs that they were familiar with.

Later that afternoon, we scoped out all the good taco shacks in town and came across one that according to our translator was one of the best in town. It definitely was some of the best mexican food I've ever had. I know that's a big statement but come on! . . . it's mexico people! (although, san diego has some legit comida de mexicano).

Then we went back to the Calvary Chapel and put on a dinner for the volunteers and leaders of the church. It was really encouraging to see them so stoked to live for the same God that we strive to please everyday. The pastor of the church was an American and had a translator so it was easy for those who didn't know much espanol to stay tuned in. Later that night we had a bonfire in a pit on the top roof of the church that overlooked the city of Rosarito. If you live on the coast of San Diego, you have most likely taken notice of the intense amount of fog lately and this was the same down south as well. The fog rolled in pretty heavy around sunset and late into the night made the city look pretty spooky.

We're ready to get a good nights sleep!

(I should've packed a pillow &/or a sleeping pad.

note to self: sleeping on tile w/ neither is a bad idea)

Overall, it was a refreshing and eye opening day in a half. To know that 30 minutes south of my living quarters is a country that is drastically different than what I have the privilege of taking part in everyday is hard to fathom. I came back grateful, longing to act justly, and love every subtle blessing that I could ever think is mine. My heart often lingers to the place of compassion in sight of the life that those orphans must live each day. I often wonder what life would be like for me today if I grew up in their circumstance. It makes me reevaluate where I place my "things" on a scale of values in accordance to how our Creator calls us to live. If there is anything I would share with you from this experience it is to LOVE on your parents today and to LOVE on your heavily Father by living your life in accordance to the life that Jesus calls us to live. The root of what is humble and just.

"He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and love mercy and to walk humbly with your God." Micah 6:8

Thanks for listening,

Garrett

Call + Response

2008-10-25T00:57:00.000-07:00

"CALL+RESPONSE is a first of its kind feature documentary film that reveals the world’s 27 million dirtiest secrets: there are more slaves today than ever before in human history. CALL+RESPONSE goes deep undercover where slavery is thriving from the child brothels of Cambodia to the slave brick kilns of rural India to reveal that in 2007, Slave Traders made more money than Google, Nike and Starbucks combined.

Luminaries on the issue such as Cornel West, Madeleine Albright, Daryl Hannah, Julia Ormond, Ashley Judd, Nicholas Kristof, and many other prominent political and cultural figures offer first hand account of this 21st century trade. Performances from Grammy-winning and critically acclaimed artists including Moby, Natasha Bedingfield, Cold War Kids, Matisyahu, Imogen Heap, Talib Kweli, Five For Fighting, Switchfoot, members of Nickel Creek and Tom Petty’s Heartbreakers, Rocco Deluca move this chilling information into inspiration for stopping it.

Music is part of the movement against human slavery. Dr. Cornel West connects the music of the American slave fields to the popular music we listen to today, and offers this connection as a rallying cry for the modern abolitionist movement currently brewing."

http://callandresponse.com/about.html

Wow, It's been some time.

2008-10-23T14:02:00.000-07:00

Hey friends!

I've decided to lay down the law in my blogging inconsistencies. My friend Mike reminded me yesterday that I often leave huge blogs from time to time and when I write them, they are usually spanning over a few weeks. Therefore, to correct this common trend, I am going to start blogging by weekly. Each week until Christmas break, I am going to challenge myself to highlight something in my life that reflects what I do down here. For example, I might share a snapshot of the homeless ministry I'm involved in or take you for a drive down sunset cliffs to OB. But this my friends isn't just any ordinary picture blog. I'm going to get video clips of the it so you have something legit to satisfy your blogging needs.

The last few weeks have been busy. For some reason, the early part of the week is an absolute blur because of classes, work, on campus ministries, etc... So here on a thursday afternoon I am content in doing absolutely nothing. Amen.

Here is what I've been up to lately...

POINT LOMA::

I took this on my iphone from my bosses office at school.

My brother Seth and his girlfriend Cosy came down to visit last week. We went to Pizza Nova. Get the BBQ Chicken. You won't regret it!

SPIRIT BELL COMPETITION::

A few weeks ago we had a spirit bell event. If you're not familiar, about every month each dorm comes together dressed up in Loma colors and roots on one of our sports teams. The loudest dorm at the end of the game wins bragging rights to the spirit bell. We beat Westmont in Volleyball at this game.

Hendricks Hall on the way to the Gym

to watch the girls play.

Baseball America Magazine voted PLNU's Baseball Field

"Most Scenic Field in the U.S."

MUSIC::

Last week, Allison and I saw Sara Bareillies at Spreckles downtown. She was great live. Wasn't sure what to expect but came out really impressed. Spreckels is a rad theatre too!

Ever been to Buffalo Brothers? It's a guitar shop in Carlsbad. They have everything, mostly top of the line stuff. When you walk in the first thing you see is a full wall of Taylors on the left and a wall of Martins on the right. The whole back room is vintage amps with strats and teles. If you care the least bit about string instruments, you need to check it out!

ROADTRIP::

Last weekend was Fall Break (a.k.a. we get friday off). So we took a drive up the central coast to San Luis Obispo. My uncle and relatives live in Los Osos overlooking Morro Bay. I dig SLO because I feel like I'm home everytime I return. I almost completely forget about life outside of SLO when I'm there. If you ever meet my Uncle Joe, Aunt Cammie, or cousins... you'll come to agree that they are the most warm, energetic, passionate people ever! I feel as though my perspective on the world and the life itself shapes a little more when I visit this place.

PISMO BEACH

I took Al to Spash Cafe in Pismo Beach on the drive up. We decided that it is officially the best clam chowder ever.. especially when you eat it in a bread bowl and sit on the pier looking out at the ocean.

There were many coffee stops along the way. Cambria was beautiful!

HARMONEY, CA

This town was one of the radest places we stopped at. As you can tell, the town wasn't a very popular place to live but the photo opp's there were fun.

Bicycle. Harmony, CA

Blue Door. Harmony, CA

Girlfriend in reflection.

MONTANA DE ORO

My volve (Nash is his name)... couldn't be any happier to be pulled off the road in a forest like this.

This is the coast of Montana de Oro.

Uncle Joe, Cousin Amanda, Me @ Cousin Caleb's soccer game

An art gallery @ a Volcom store

Story: On the way home, we were a little worried because Nash was giving us some turbulence so I was taking it easy on the little guy most of the drive up and down. BUT, right after we left downtown Santa Barbara, I got a flat tire near Monticito. According to our friend who came to rescue from AAA, she (yes our tow truck driving, tire replacing hero was a female and did a awesome job) said I ran over a nail. Bummer right? It doesn't stop there. We had to drive 50 mph the whole way home because I had a half sized tire that could only go that fast so for three hours, we drove in the right lane coasting in cruise control and coming close to some close call. I found that people don't know how to drive when someone's going that slow. I found it interesting that I was in that position though. After a weekend of understanding what it means to forget about the clutter of life and how to get rid of the baggage that I carry around inside of me, I began to see a people on the road who lacked patience, kindness, understanding, quick to anger, etc. Our world, most specifically the United States, seems have developed the need to speed through life when the faster we go, the better chance we have at missing something profound, something unique, something original. I find myself so wrapped up in the logistics of life that I forget what that I don't set the pace of my life, my creator does. If He made me to live in the likeness of His Son, something tells me that Jesus didn't live life in the left lane. I'd like to think that if he had a choice and a full set of new tires, He's still choose to take the right lane. Driving in the right lane is saying to yourself, I'm not going to delve into the constant pressure to speed threw a situation. I'm going to rest in the fact that I will arrive when I arrive and I know I'll make it. My friend Jordan articulates these thoughts in depth and I love the language he uses. If you want to take a peak, the link is: http://jordanfrye.blogspot.com/2008/08/just-to-be-where.html

DRIVING HOME

This is where he pulled off for the flat. Not a bad rest stop huh?

Destination: San Diego 198 Miles (going 50 mph @ 5:30pm on Sunday)

Ventura, CA

So that has been some insight into what my life has looked like lately. Thanks for reading. I always feel encouraged when you write comments so write away!

I'm excited to finally start blogging legitimately once a week now. Talk to you soon!

Garrett

Hey friends!

2008-10-16T01:39:00.000-07:00

I am sorry for the absence of attention to this site lately. I have been so busy with mid-terms and enjoying the simplicity of life that I forget about things like technology, which I think is often a good thing.

I have done some fun things lately that I'd love to share with ya but really need to get to sleep. I have a mid-term in my Persuasion class tomorrow, which I'd like to mention is a freakin' sweet class and I'm learning persuasion tactics so just know that the next time I come after you with an idea or a thought, I might be tossing those theories your way! But seriously, 7:30am comes fast in Hendricks Hall so goodnight!

Garrett

Ps: if you came to Time Out tonight... thanks for singing along!

Pss: I'm going on a road trip tomorrow that I've been looking forward to for months but you'll have to read my next blog to find out all about it!! Hint: I was there semi recently and I have blogged about it before.

Oh! And before I go... I was studying at the Living Room the other day and when I came out to my car, the temp gage read 104! How crazy! In October? Really?

What's in a memory?

2008-10-03T00:24:00.000-07:00

(Disclaimer: If you are a Cubs fan, please don't be angry with me if you keep reading this blog and all that I talk about revolves around the Dodgers. I can like your team too (just not right now))

Who would have guessed that my Dodgers would go to Wrigley, where the Chicago Cubs have arguably the best fans in the National League and beat the Cubbies in both of their games leading the series 2-0?

The 2008 version of Kirt Gibson?

I must admit, I haven't been the most faithful Dodger fan this season especially if you knew me as a wee lad, I was obsessed. Every night in high school/late junior high, I'd come home from baseball practice (which in La Mirada, Ca where the sun shines almost everyday, baseball was an 11 months commitment every year), make sure my mom would wash my grass stained practice pants (which I might add was quite the vicious cycle), stuff my scarcely high metabolismed body with anything I could find, and practice quadratic equations as I watched Sports Center play over and over as the reruns would play every hour. Baseball was my life and at one time, and more so... my dream.

Have you ever remembered a picture in your mind or a phrase someone said in your past and you try to figure out why that moment is so engrained in your mind opposed to the other vague memories that attempt to linger on? There are very specific conversations that I've had with people that I've kept with me to this day. I still see pictures that captivated a few seconds in my life years ago that allow me to remember in detail how special that moment really was.

I have one memory that I've convinced myself to be sitting in my photographic memory bank. My dad and I spent hours upon hours at Dodger Stadium as a kid standing in line for autographs of players that I've never heard of, sweating in the sun just to feel the joys of a great southern California sunny day game, or the persuasion skills I tried to work on opposing teams during batting practice to simply get them to throw me a ball. I specifically remember one late summer night as a ten year old when the sun had already set by the 3rd inning and the Dodger Dog(s) had left me satisfied for the time being. The boys in blue were losing pretty bad and their was no real reason to stay. My pops kept checking to see if I wanted to drive home yet always giving me the feeling that it's ok to stay. Even though I could easily live there all year long, I figured it was about time to go. As I descended down the uneven cement steps of the bleacher section in the Right Field Pavilion, this picture forms every time I think about my dream to become a profession baseball player. So, in order walk under the bleachers, you must walk down by the outfield fence and turn to go down the last row of stairs. This view of the field was so close to being on the field that I would constantly fantasize on how cool it would be to just play one game. This last row of stairs literally brings life to the song Stairway to Heaven as I fallowed my dad down. Each step that would bring me closer to losing sight of the field was another step I wanted to take in pursuing my dream to play on that field someday. I guess it's easy to conclude that we remember things better when pictures line up with thoughts and somehow we are having an emotional response through it all.

Even though I never was able to pursue my dream of become a Los Angles Dodger, I was able to finally play on it my senior year of high school in a CIF Championship Game. It was ironically the last time I would ever suit up for a baseball game after 12 years of it consuming my life. So, now I'm left with the excitement of a team I lived for as a boy and to see them actually winning in the playoffs is something to get excited about. Not to mention, I have never heard my dad this happy in months. Honestly, I think it is accurate to believe that my dad's "stoke level" is highly dependent on how well the Dodgers are doing that week...

My friend Ryan (15), Me (10), My friend Taylor (11)

GO DODGERS!

-g