Watch me as I gas that, fo' dot six Range

Alright I'm driving out to Havasu Saturday after work. It's a four hour drive so I'm taking recommendations for a playlist I'm making to help the drive go by quicker. Give me as many suggestions of artist or songs to add to the list. I'm open to all styles of music and when I say all, i'm not one of those people who are like "I like all kinds of music except for country and classical...". Here's what I've got so far:

I look forward to your help, until next time good luck exploring the Infinite Abyss

Is the 'Good Life' better than the life I live when I thought that I was gonna go crazy?

For some reason, there's been a few events that I've been thinking a lot about lately to hold on to hope.

1. "I'm back to Vegas cause I always had a passion for flashin'"
   > When I was young, it seemed like our family had this tradition of going to Las Vegas for a weekend when ever one of us kids turned twenty-one. When I turned twenty-one, we did not do that. Don't get me wrong, I had an amazing twenty-first birthday and I am extremely grateful. However my cousin Lo-Lo's older brothers both had there's in Vegas and now it's her turn. I have been wanting so badly to go for the past year, and I have no clue why, but I am a bit afraid i'm getting my hopes up for nothing.
2. "Now my grandmama ain't the only girl calling 'BABY!'"
   > Though working at the church was great for so many reasons, they have this obsession with Jesus' supposed "birthday" (sarcasm for you who didn't catch that). This is completely understandable, however, this often resulted in me working the weekend before and the weekend of Christmas. My family also has this crazy tradition where the whole family spends the weekend at my Grandma's in Big Bear the weekend before Christmas. I have missed out on this tradition for the last five years. This seems like it'll be the first year in a long time I'll get to re-experience the drunken UNO games, the wild LCR games where winning $30 is better than Vegas, and the possibility that it will snow and on the way home my cousin will once again rearend my uncle.
3. "Having money isn't everything... not having it is."
   > This one is kind of weird. For one reason, I'm starting to realize that money is becoming the most important thing in my life. With the growing desire for material things, money is starting to become my mammon. As I continue to look for a better paying main job or a possible second/night job, my dad keeps trying to get me to become an entrepreneur and start a cleaning/childcare business. Don't get me wrong they're good ideas, but I don't have the time or energy to put into that kind of a job right now. Money just seems to be a big issue right now. I think for the first time it's actually taken an effect in my life. All I know is that by the time I get a new truck/x-terra, I will have paid off the balance on my credit card, and have a steady enough job to pay for car payments and school.
   

Apparently the weights of this world have started to show through. My parents and Mar continue to ask me why I seem down or distant and to be honest I don't mean to let it show, It's just a very odd time in my life. I've never been in a situation like this. Immediately after high school I had a job and i've kept steady well-paying jobs since then, while always keeping $1,000+ in my savings. Now that that cushin has been deflated, I am forced to depend on GOD for my provisions. While He does miraculously continue to provide for me it's something I'm not used to.
Well that's it for this update of life in the Infinite Abyss, until next time, good luck.

A million years of evolution, we get danny quayle

It seems like more and more lately I want to deny that I'm a Christian. To be honest, I've come to the realization that I'm not a Christian, but merely a follower of Jesus. I don't fit the Christian mold and I've been struggling with that for about the past five - six years. Maybe it's because I was not raised in church and therefore I hold many "secular" views. However most if not all the things I believe in I have tested against the bible and what I believe is not wrong when tested against what Jesus shared.
Today a co-worker asked me about the verse I have tattooed on my wrist [1 John 4:19 "We love others because He first loved us."] and he then asked me if I was a "Jesus Freak". I asked him what he meant by "Jesus Freak" and responded that that means I am one. I simply asked for a clear definition, because it seems increasingly that the closer we get to November's election, the "freaks" come out and I want to purposely push myself as far away from them as possible. I felt that it was my duty to put myself as far away from that group of people in order to keep myself a decent representation of Christ.
I would like to set clear a few things. (1) I am not a Uptight, close-minded, right-wing, republican. (2) I am not Homophobic and along with that (3) I don't believe that giving homosexuals their GOD given right and American liberty threatens in anyway a "traditional" marriage. (4) I believe that there is more to a relationship than hurrying to get married (which is usually a reason to rush to "consummate" the marriage) and have children.

I must go now before I get myself into any more trouble. Until next time good luck exploring the Infinite Abyss

P.s. Watch this video to further understand how I feel

Instead of telling our young people to plan ahead, we should tell them to plan to be surprised.

Well since my birthday a week ago, i've been doing a lot of thinking. I had a great birthday week and when I was out to a dinner with my parents I got to talking about how my life has not been what I had planned. Don't get me wrong, i've done a lot of things I never thought I would have done by the age 23.

Since the time I graduated, I've traveled to: Texas (twice), a couple of places in Costa Rica (including their beaches and Cloud Forrest), I've seen/driven over the Rio De Janeiro, Scootered across Hawaii (and got tattooed there), saw the Sydney Opera House and several other parts of Australia, and went to Louisiana where the people are amazing (and all talented musicians).

Now the goals I had planned weren't ones of graduating school by a certain time or being a well off in a career. To be honest the only things I can really remember were that I planned to be married by twenty-three and to have a kid (a boy) by the age of twenty-five. I understand that this is very odd for such a young person to have as his only goals in life, but lets be honest, nothing about me is really normal.

So in response to all the thinking I've been doing since last Thursday, i've made a list of rough goals and projected times that I hope those of you who are close to me can hold me acountable to. I am still in the process of narrowing things down so outside input is welcome.

School Goals
1 Transfer to CSUSB Spring '2009/Fall 2009
- Major: Sociology Minor: TBD
- Specialization: Culture/Education/Politics/Economics/Gender/Religion
2 Masters at UCR/CSULB 2011
- Specialization: Family and Social Psychology/Race & Class Inequality/Political Economics
& Global Social Change
* All to be done hopefully with as little money taken out in Loans as possible.
Career Goals
1 Sociology Teacher
-University/Community College/High School
2 Youth Counselor
3 Youth Program Director/Organizer
Personal Goals (mostly material and vain desires)
1 Married by 2010

-I need to check with the misses on this one
2 A child of my own (still a boy [the name must go on] but i'll settle for a girl) by 2012
3 Adobt a child (personally one of color (from U.S. or International) by 2015
4 A Beagle or Bulldog Puppy

- It's name will be Pavlov
5 Move out before I get married
- This is debatable for several reasons... mainly it cost to get married.
6 Better job by Summer of 2009
- More than minimum wage and benefits would be wonderful.
7 New car
- I understand that this can only come after I get a new job.

Well, that's it. Nothing probably too interesting, but I wanted some documented evidence that i'm not wasting my life away. Until next time, good luck exploring the infinite abyss.

Amazing still it seems i'll be twenty three

So this weekend marked the beginning of my birthday week. It was pretty nice, my family and I went camping out in Carlsbad with Marlys, Joe, Gina, Mark and Ginger with guest appearances by Joe "G" and Jenny. I haven't seen them in years and it's good to see him after hearing how he beat out cancer. Though we did not do much, it seems like those are often the best vacations (not that I need a vacation). There were not many things I wanted for my birthday, mostly I just want a job. However, my mom did get Marcella and I tickets to go see RENT in November at the California Theatre! Well, I'll try and keep things posted on how the birthday week is going, but here are some scenes from this past weekend:
I'm a sucker for sunsets
It looks like where they live on Two and Half Men
Our Barbecue feast in the making.
These are all scenes of the surfers from the bluff where were were camping.

Jamaica + Asia = Jamasian

This morning I had off, no school and no jobs from my cousin so i decided i was going to make pizza since I've been craving it for quite awhile now. I searched for tasty ingredients and here is what i found.

Ingredients:

1     Boboli crust

       Mushrooms

       Sprouts

1     Banana

1/2 Zuccini (one from our garden

       Artichoke Pesto for the sauce

       SoySation Mozzarella cheese

       Foster Farms grilled chicken pieces (optional)

I started off by frying the banana in Lemon Juice and a few drops of syrup.

Next applied the pesto and cheese.

Then I stir fried the zucchini, Japanese spaghetti (sprouts), and mushrooms.

Following that I grilled the chicken and got ready to pop it in the oven.

After baking at 350 for 9 minutes we get what I like to call "Jamasian Pizza". Jamaican style fried banana and grilled chicken with stir fried vegetables.

Rich Get Richer 'Till the Poor Get Educated

So today i went out and put in an application at Pier 1 and got two more to fill out and put in first chance i get. I also made a delicious bowl of ice cream & sherbet.


Then I went and hung out at Mar's house while her, James and Kristen studied for their up coming art final. As I shopped & wandered around cyber space I heard several funny quotes come from their studying that i'm sure made sense to them, but to me were just random. These saying made me want to put a list of quotes i heard today that i thought were funny or clever.

"This has to be mannerist, his head is not that big!" - James

"Look these people are green!" - Marcella


Kristen: I put "ladies".
James: I put "naked ladies".

Kristen: I wrote "bio chones"
Marcella: BACHIONE!

"Living off the fat of kings. I'll play the scab at your hunger strike." - Sage Francis

Well that's it for today, good luck exploring the Infinite Abyss