Just a theory

One of the best parts about the show Lost is that it raises just as many question as it answers. It has an enormous back-story and depth to it's characters, which makes it so much fun to talk about "by the watercooler". So I have a new theory that only a "Lost" fan would understand. I was watching the last episode which describes Desmond's story in more detail. There is a character in his flashback/dream who is able to see into the future but doesn't act on her knowledge. She says that the universe corrects itself and that even if you intervened, the same thing would just occur again later. For example, if you knew someone was going to be killed in a certain way, you could prevent their death, but the universe would keep making attempt after attempt. You would have to intervene over and over and over. She then tells Desmond that pushing the button is the most important thing he would ever do with his life. Later in the episode we see how this plays out, when Desmond is able to see that Charlie is going to die and has to intervene twice. This made me think. We still don't know why the "Others" are still on the island. I think I might... just might... have the answer. Here it is... the Others have already found a way to unbalance the equation and change the destiny of human-kind. They succeeded in their experiments. (If you don't know about the equation, click here to find out )The reason they are still on the island is that the UNIVERSE CORRECTS ITSELF. The others have to keep intervening. They have to keep pushing the button an affecting the other environmental factors represented by the numbers in the equation. Now that the button seems to be out of the picture, there must be other experiments that were successful. Anyway, I'm interested to see how the story plays out. For those who have no clue what I'm talking about, you really need to check out the show.

In Progress

As promised, here is a cropped cellphone shot of my first oil painting. I'm still working on it. I should be finished with it in about a week. It's a still-life that we set up in class. Everyone was picking these close-up shots, so I decided to be different and pick a wide-angle view. Unfortunately, that has meant MORE work. This was really just an exercise for me so that I can get used to the oils, before I start experimenting. I want my next painting to have a little more meaning to it.

I Want My MTV

After months of missing key points in the TV show "Lost," I've decided to enter the 21st century and pay for cable. For some reason, whenever a train goes by my house (which is often) it causes major interference in my signal. There have been just too many moments when Kate FINALLY appears on-screen and then vanishes just as quickly as the freight train speeds by, it's loud horn mocking me the whole way. Never again. Now I can see her cute freckled face in all of it's high-definition clarity. Not only THAT, I can... get this.... REWIND. YES, it's true. DVR is a wonderful thing. I can set it to record any show on the schedule and watch it whenever I'm around. Tonight I've been enjoying the U2 Vertigo concert that all my friends payed 100+ bucks to attend. There also some great channels like the HD discovery channel, cooking channels, home remodeling channels, music videos.... I'm gonna learn so MUCH :)

Happy Trees

I'm taking a painting class this semester at CPCC. I've decided that to accomplish anything in painting, I need a little structure. I considered renting a studio space, but that proved to be fairly expensive. For awhile, I even considered using the retail space that I bought as an investment a couple years ago. Considering the fact that the rates that I can charge in NoDa, continue to go up, that didn't seem to be the right decision either. I finally decided that the better route would be to take a class at the local community college. That way, I'd have some instruction, a place to work, and some people to relate to. Somehow I'm an extrovert stuck in an introvert's body. I really enjoy people. I didn't expect much going into it but there are some really talented folks in that class and it's been so much fun. It's very relaxing being creative in a setting where there are no deadlines. I go there every tuesday and thursday after my high-stress design job at Lucquire George Andrews Advertising. It's a nice change. My buddies in the class so far have been "The Kim," this crazy cool art chick with a great sense of style that loves to read and is working on a "question of the day" podcast. The other is Dustin, who is a student by day and an indie rocker by night. We all just chill and ask each other "would you rather" questions. An example might be, Would you rather be Hans Solo, Indiana Jones, or Jack Ryan, and why? You can get to know someone pretty quickly that way. The ages range from 19 to 60 so it's a pretty eclectic group. Good times. I'm currently working on my first oil painting, which is turning out pretty well. I'll be sure to post a pic of it soon. For now, I've pulled out some of the old acrylic paintings that I still have around. My best one to date resides in my parents house, but these will do for now. More to come.

Cry Me a River

It's only two hours now until the next round starts. I'm turning 29 tomorrow. In one sense, I'm starting to feel a little old. The grey hairs are plentiful which is strange to me, but I'm told it makes me look distinguished or something. In fact, it's taken over so much that some people even mistake it for HIGHLIGHTS. C'mon, I know I have the boyish good looks of my man J. T. but seriously... I refuse to spend more than 12.95 + tip on my hair. In fact, I just got my free haircut after my eighth hole punch in my Supercuts card.

In another sense, I don't think I've aged a bit since I finished puberty. Somehow, I feel like the same guy. In ways, I've matured. In others, I've regressed. I'm not sure what to make of it all. The longer I live as a single person, the more selfish I think I become. My family tells me that I need to find a mission in life. I think that is probably good counsel.

Working in a ministry situation for several years killed a bit of my desire to do that, but the motivation is slowly returning. It's not that it wasn't completely worthwhile. It was. Overall, it was a great experience. It's just that when ministry becomes your job, it's easy to lose focus and get caught up in the day to day frustration of working life. Somehow, in your mind, you start to associate that frustration with spiritual life in general. That's been my personal experience. I'm convinced every person in ministry needs a break every few years and I think some of us live our faith more effectively in a secular environment.

The point of all this is that I want to find a mission for my last year in my twenties. I'm hopeful that God will use me somehow this year. I'm exploring some ways to serve and trying to sense if God really cares about which one I choose. I think He probably does. That brings up the issue of general will vs. specific will, but I'll leave that for another post. I'm trying desperately to stay on topic.

An hour and half now....