Team Motivation

At church we did a food relay. It is was the grossiest thing ever. Mia here was giving her teammate motivation to not quit. The events included:

• Eat 9 mini doughnuts from a string without using your hands
• Drink 3 cups of tonic water
• Eat 7 spoonfuls of peanut butter
• Search for a piece of gum in a plate of whip cream (pictured above) - and there were trick starbursts in the way
• Eat 14 Oreos (it was originally 20)
• Find a pickle in a plate of jallepenos 
• Make a PB&J blind folded and eat it
• Eat a plate full of jello only using a straw 

It was disgusting and I was so glad I did not have to participate.

Autumn Fest

Melissa Triplet is an amazing person. She planned the best Halloween party I've ever been too. We bobbed for apples, carved pumpkins, played Mafia. I always play the narrator in Mafia because I find I have a guilty looking face and people kill me off right away so I just sit there for most of the game. Thus as the narrator - I don't have to worry about looking guilty, not looking guilty or whatever. Then we ate pumpkin pie and bbq.

Halloween Hamburglar

Two Nights Before Halloween:
It started like anything other night, with addition of having to plan a costume. I left home, went to Laguna Middle to observe some classrooms, had worship practice, got dinner. You know - the usual plan. But it all went wrong. I came to Large Group dressed up as a stressed high school senior (complete with a note to learn wilderness skills) when my precious hamburger was stolen!
I filed a report with the cops (more like the Army men who where there) but no one could do anything. I then got this picture from the thief himself - and I must say, the burger is probably long by now.

EDUC 480 Research

This are some of the photos I've been collecting for my EDUC 480 (technology in the classroom) projects. Apparently I have know what input devices are (things you can plug into the computer).

Yes and I have to know this to get my technology certificate to teach in the classroom.

Sunrise

Yes - I did say sunrise. Every Wednesday now I have to get up at the wonderful hour of 6 am in order to get ready and make it to the class I am observing. I must figure out a way to have my first period be a prep period or invest in a really good coffee brand or I am never going to make it as a teacher.
On the bright side - I do actually get to see sunsets. This is only because it doesn't get light until 7 am. Once daylight savings time ends though, it will back to waking up after the sun rises (I can then pretend it is later than it actually is).

Third New Home

So my second new home is the Education Building where I have all my classes (3 out of the 4 are even in the same room). But Starbucks has become my third home, this is where I wander to when I am either a) waiting for worship practice/rehearsal to start or b) really tired of wandering around campus. Today I found solace in the mini doughnuts to keep myself from going crazy with all the work I had to get done.

USB Man

This is USB Man. He is an action figure whose head comes off to reveal of USB flash drive. He's been sitting in my phone for a while and I thought I'd let him come and see the blogger world.

Money

"Jesus sat down opposite the place where the offerings were put and watched the crowd putting their money into the temple treasury. Many rich people threw in large amounts but a poor widow came and put in two very small copper coins, worth only a fraction of a penny. Calling his disciples, Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, this poor widow has put more into the treasury than all the others. They all gave out of their wealth but she, out of her poverty, put in everything - all she had to live on." Mark 12:41-44

There are many reasons why I like this passage. One - Jesus is watching people give their money back to him - not to count how much money he is getting but to watch their attitudes behind it all. Two - it says that the rich "threw" their money in - as if it means nothing to them. Three - this widow put in all that she had, and it was nothing but Jesus saw this as fit to mention to his disciples. This woman is an example for me because I have way more than she does but in the eyes of many around me, I do not have much. But it is more powerful to give out of poverty than it is to give out of wealth. And Jesus here - calls us to give no matter what.

Target Ad

My bedroom could be an ad for Target right now. The bookshelf and the baskets come straight from the land of the red bullseye.

Oak-tober Fest!

Sarah and I had the best dinner at Spikes. It started with a beer and then we both had Bacon, Avocado cheeseburgers and fries, then another beer, a midway through the second beer Phil and Peter joined us. We played cards and it was lovely. If I could do this every friday night, I would.

Coffee with Donald Miller

Today is coffee time with Donald Miller. I have to admit, I look pretty cool when I sit in the coffee shop, sipping my drip coffee (we're talking the legit stuff - no over-sugared lattes here) and reading D.Miller's blog.

Now if it was the real Donald Miller - that would be AMAZING.

Cafe Monte

Having this chair and tiny desk makes part of my room look like a cafe. Now if I could afford it - I'd get one of the amazing paintings that looks like a window looking out on a scene and some cafe looking decor in order to enhance this theme. But I will still only have this tiny table.

Eve and The Band Perry

I've been listening a lot to The Band Perry - a new country music band. All comments aside about me listening to country music, I really like their stuff. So I was eating an apple and one of their songs came to mind: 

"Wish I would have noticed sooner

All that crazy in your eyes.

Do you practice in the mirror

On that tempt and crooked smile? 

Like that serpent in the garden,

You came crawling back to me

Twice I ate that poisoned apple

Made me sick of being Eve.

I'll admit that I was wrong

You said I miss you

Oh yes I do

Honey I miss you, being gone. "

Rainy Day Love

I love rainy days at coffee shops. Now Starbucks is not my first choice but when its cold and I don't want to drive to the other side of town to Nautical Bean sometimes I have to travel to Starbucks. 

I'm Just That Awesome

Need I say more? Only that my dad got me this t-shirt and I was giggling for glee when I got it.

M&M Wedding

So my mom and I attend an old family friend, Mark Stuckey's wedding this weekend. He is the last of the Stuckey kids to get married and we attended the previous two so I was excited to come to Mark's. Also this picture has a lot of M's in so I like it: Melissa and Margot at Mark and Molly's marriage celebration.

Antique Stove

So apparently this stove is a collectible. It is worth thousands of dollars - maybe more because its a working stove. However, as great as it is to own an antique stove, I would rather sell the thing, get a stove where the knobs actually say what temp the stove is at, and forget the whole pilot light thing. Sorry stove - I just don't like you, and you constantly smell of gas. In my opinion - lets go for antique look but modern technology. Best of both worlds here...

Here Comes the Sun

"Little darling, it's been a long, cold, lonely winter. Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here but here comes the sun. Here comes the sun, and I say, it's alright."

This is Sam. Sam is a friend of Carl's who is a friend of Nate and Anna's. Normally visitors at the Brigham household aren't anything special but Sam is amazing because he is British. That means he has a divine accent. He also plays the piano. He was playing "Here Comes the Sun" by the Beatles. Now I just have to figured out how to keep him here longer so he can speak in that heavenly accent and serenade me some more... the plotting begins.

Undeveloped Frontal Lobes

Since I cannot attend the credential BBQ - Michelle had the brilliant idea to take my photo and bring it with her. That way I can attend the BBQ in spirit. This then resulted in about five minutes of funny pictures of my face and three minutes of Professor Clark staring at us in amazement. He's probably thinking how our frontal lobes aren't fully developed.

BBQ! Saturday! 'Nough Said

I wish passionately desire that I could could attend this BBQ. It is for all the credential students and it would be AMAZING! I am excited to go to Mark's wedding but I am missing out on this. :(

Chopping Beats

Normally chopping beats is not an exciting activity. But the knife Zeke is using scars me at how large it is - so I was a little concerned. I snapped the picture and left the potential danger zone as soon as possible.

Top Ten

Since today is 10.10.10 - I've decided to name my top ten photos of all time that I have taken. These are either places that are important to me on a sentimental scale or best showcase my talent. They are in no particular order. 

1. Yosemite National Park - Elizabeth Lake. This was taken back in 2005 and the two hikers in the background are my sister, Katie, and my cousin, Wyatt. I love this picture because of the snake-like river and the color contrast. 

2. Tuolumne River in Yosemite National Park. Also taken in 2005. I love this picture because of its sharpness and brightness, even though it was taken before I owned my digital SLR. I love how good this picture still came out, only proves how amazing Yosemite actually is. 

3. Surfers at Huntington Beach. This is one of my first action shots on my Nikon D40. I believe it was Christmas 2008, right after I got my first Nikon digital SLR and upgraded from my Fuji Finepix. 

4. I love this picture because I loved my trip to England in 2004. This just happened to be one of those pictures that I wasn't thinking about when I took it, and it later became my favorite picture from the whole trip. 

5. Fresno, 2007. This is one of my all time favorite photos. This was taken during my first time at FUI and we are all having a quiet retreat day. After about an hour of journaling I decided to travel the Fulton Mall and take pictures. This became my iconic picture for all things relating to Fresno and became the start of worship through photography.

6. The Big Island, Hawaii in 2006. This trip was my high school graduation present from my grandparents. They have a time share condo on The Big Island so it turned into a family vacation. This was a random drive that turned into a rainy day that turned into the best pictures from the trip.

7. Jamey and Eric's Wedding, Bakersfield, CA in April 2010. This was the first wedding I was ever a photographer for. I was so excited to be included in this celebration but also thrilled that I was one of four photographers. It really takes the stress off.

8. Jimmy and Kari's wedding in Washington. May 2010. I wasn't a photographer for this wedding but I still love how this picture turned out. Jimmy and Kari were the first InterVarsity friends of mine that are my age to get married.

9. I love taking pictures of flowers. And of the hundreds I probably have this one is by far my favorite. First off, the rose is in perfect bloom. Second, it just rained, which makes all flowers look fantastic. Third, this was right outside my house so I got to see this every day.

10. Finally the last favorite. This is also from the 2006 Hawaii trip. Not to re-state my weakness for flowers, I do love the color combination of the white and purple flowers. Another picture where I wasn't expecting it to turn out as good as it did.

Hello. My Name is Justin.

Hello Justin. Sorry, he's shy. He doesn't really like people so he hides behind trees and purposefully blurs himself so we can't really see him in his photographs. But that is ok. He's nice and won't bite...

:)

Pumpkin Ale

So my friend Krystal Park turned me on to this amazing Fall treat - Pumpkin Ale. Yes it does taste like pumpkin and yes - it is quite delicious. I think this will be a new fall tradition.

Broken Truck

This truck has been sitting in the pseudo parking lot outside my house for the entire time that I've been there. I have a hunch it has been sitting there longer. It is clearly broken and I keep wondering if Nate is going to fix it or just is too lazy to get rid of it. I have no idea but the most fascinating is the unwanted car seat that remains on top of the truck.

Rainy Days

A week ago we were averaging 100 + degree weather. Now it is pouring rain. I will say, however, that rain provides much better pictures. I prefer rainy whether because it reminds me of winter, well fall. And fall means the Christmas holidays are fast approaching us.

Airstoft Guns

Sometimes I forget that I live in the country. I found this when I came. I hear rumors of an airsoft gun war in the future...

"Born Ready"

It was Shiloh's birthday today. Birthday's for one year olds crack me up because they aren't going to remember it. But he does enjoy playing with the balloon. I think it is favorite today.

Boba-licious

I LOVE, absolutely love Boba. Today was the most perfect day ever. I got to hang out with Sol, my twin, we got to go to House of Noodles and eat amazing food, and have Honeydew boba. I love honeydew boba.

Logan Date

This is my friend Logan. He is officially the cutest baby ever. My mom and I got to babysit him and he as mostly well behaved. By the end of the night he was growing fussier and fussier - mostly because he missed his mom. So in order to calm him down we played a Pixar short five times in a row - we would have gone more but Mom came home so he was fine. 

Art Processing

On the last day of FUI we had a retreat of silence (yes that is 3 hours of intentional silence). That is when I created this - the words are from Psalm 46. I was deciding to embrace my artistic side of life. I then put this on my FUI wall right above my dresser. Some of my favorite FUI pictures from both 2007 and 2010 border my artwork.