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02/24/06--06:26: Friday, February 24, 2006 (chan 2243533)

OK so here's my "perfect storm" of a weekend:

Saturday:

8 AM - 12 PM: Intrasquad track meet. 5K. Race day and all the stress that comes with that. Once a runner...
2 PM - 4 PM: Debate practice. I'm not even sure if I made the team. I hate being left hanging like this.
6 PM - ???: Band concert. Assuming I survive the first two things. Although SHUICHI is a great conductor, we're playing our hardest piece all year in the shortest amount of time... I don't know if I'll have the chops.

Sunday:
- Church
- Middlebury interview (hopefully): First impressions & such. I have to remember not to talk too fast.

This will probably be the busiest weekend of my life. This is my mountain to climb. Lord give me strength. You and You alone can get me through this.

- Doug




03/02/06--14:45: Thursday, March 02, 2006 (chan 2243533)

It's been a tough week for me.

Baker finally pulled the trigger on the debate team selection. I didn't make it. Beaten by... Tarang of all people. I'd be OK with this if it were anyone but Tarang. I asked Mr. Baker why... and he said, "Tarang did the most work... and he was the most conscientious." Most work... yeah that's true. I guess Tarang did put in hours and hours. Actually, I do know, because Tarang tells people stuff like that whether they like it or not. But most "conscientious"... alright, so you reward the guy for being the "nice guy?" I'll keep my internet complaining to a minimum, but I'd feel a lot better about this if Tarang weren't so annoying and thoroughly unlikeable. He's not so much "conscientious." as desperately eager to please. Also, that he goes ahead an obliviously rubs it in my face the first time I saw him that day, after I found out, didn't help things much: "WOOHOO Doug! I'm going to Cultural!"..."...and I'm not." I wanted to yell at him "Look who you're talking to, Fatty McFatterson! This is why no one likes you!" but I don't think that would've been the right thing to do.

I am going to Manila (again!) this weekend (yay!) for a track meet (boo.) I'm running the 1500m and the 5k. (booooo.) I'm still not in shape yet... but God willing, I'll give it all I have. I seriously don't have anything to lose.

"Every blessing You pour out I'll /turn back to praise /When the darkness closes in Lord /Still I will say
 Blessed be the name of the Lord." - Matt Redman

- Doug







03/17/06--05:46: Friday, March 17, 2006 (chan 2243533)

."I'm living again
Awake and alive
I'm dying to breathe in these abundant skies" - Switchfoot - "Learning to Breathe"

So things are getting back on track now...

Two tests today - MEH and physics... MEH test was fine, but I'm going to have do some hardcore reading in the meantime if I want to make sure I get a 5. Physics... was physics. Why in the blue hell does Page have to put nuclear physics on the test? We had to learn it ourselves over Christmas break and he never mentions it again... that's almost four freaking months. Then the class before the test, he's all like, "Oh, there'll be nuclear on this test too." OMGWTF. I would have laughed if I weren't so horrified. And of course, the nuke question is the one I flub on the free response. Idiot. Page makes me fear physics.

Had an intrasquad this afternoon. For some reason, it begins at 3:30, not 4:00, so the minute I get there, Baker barks, "1500 BOYS, TO THE FINISH LINE!" Crap! I didn't even get to warm up. The first lap I was definitely feeling the stiffness. Plus I was a little dehydrated, so I got that nasty sticky-dry mouth feeling halfway in. It was a little disappointing... I've run faster splits in practice. I ended up getting 5:23, which I guess is about the same as my time sophomore year of 5:22. Halfway through the season, that's... OK. I'm pretty sure I could have knocked off 10-20 seconds if I had been more ready. There'll be other races. If I can break 5:00 in the 1500 and 20:00 in the 5k, I'll die a happy man. Renuka almost beat my time in the girls' race though. That was a little scary.

So we were done at like 4:00 PM. The rest of the time, I just hung out. Cool stuff it most def. was. Hung out some more in the photo room with Kim & Alex & Kristen & Glen & co - apparently they were making some kind of action movie. With at least 3 costume changes for each person or something. I ended up watching the "I'M THE JUGGERNAUT" video with Alex. "Do they know who I am? They must not know who I am. I'm the Juggenaut, b*tch! I'm-a hit you with yo' own pimp!" Awesome. Watched the Taue vs. Marufuji match on Youtube as well.

I also saw something disappointing today. After I had finished my MEH test (I always finish these things fast - no idea way... impatience probably) I wander over to the caf... some of my senior friends had spent most of the free making this web of people and who they hooked up with... seriously. Names, lines, lines leading to names, everything. That makes me... sad. I'm serious. When I asked, they said it was "fun." Where's the fun in that? This is something you usually only see in teen movies or on TV. It's like a public black book, or "black document." For all the times I wish I had someone, I'm equally thankful that I've never done anything to appear on that list or any list like it. And I want to forget I ever saw it. Have things really gone this far? Is this the way guys and girls relate to each other these days? Seriously. Is physical intimacy easier than love? Reminds me of a Switchfoot song:

"She... is easier than love, is easier than love, it's easier to fake and smile and bribe. It's easier to live, easier to lie, it's harder to face ourselves at night, feeling alone, what have we done? What is the monster we've become? Where is my soul? Numb."

End.

- Doug







03/24/06--06:46: Friday, March 24, 2006 (chan 2243533)

Today I finally talked my mom into letting me skip school and sleep in after 4 years of wishing/pleading/begging. w00t. So I ended up checking in at 11:45. I ended up sleeping from 1:30 to about 9:15...which is probably the most sleep I've gotten all year.

Despite that, I was a freaking narcoleptic the whole day. It was weird. This sleepy feeling even carried over to... track, where we for some sadistic reason had to run the 5k/3k. Dammit. Baker yelling at me in front of the whole team for no real reson didn't help things much. So the distance girls had been going "Why? Why? Why? Why?" for quite some time, this gem pops out of my mouth:

Me: "So why are we running a time trial after a speed workout?"
Baker: *leans forward and gets in my face* "Well maybe you can go to COLLEGE and get a DEGREE and become a TEACHER and THEN DO WHATEVER YOU WANT!! UNTIL THEN, WHO'S IN CHARGE??"
Me: "Alright, I get it."
Baker: "WHO'S IN CHARGE??"
Me: "I get it."
Baker: "I AM! END OF DISCUSSION!"

Talk about taking full stinking blast. I was freaking PISSED. I basically stood around steaming for the next 20 minutes. If I could have burned a hole in the field with my eyes, I would have. Yeah, he thinks I'm being difficult because I question his coaching style. I wasn't. I just wanted a friggin' reason. Oh no, it's like I somehow violated the pristine state of track and field. I don't need that BS. Dr. Smith basically saying this was "one of the dumbest things I could have done" didn't help things much. I guess he meant well, but I've done far dumber stuff in my life which I actually regret, as opposed to arousing the ire of some geriatric track coach. Screw that.

5K was basically a wash. 20:22... woohoo, beat my personal best by... one second. Oh well. Today was not the right day for breaking 20. Just didn't feel it. The fact that I somehow packed spandex & gym shorts instead of my usual running shorts didn't help much. Also that I felt like taking a nap the whole time. Couldn't really open my straight without putting myself in "OMGWTF" pain territory b/c of shin splints. Anyway, there are a lot of things I could say, but whatever. There's always next time. The fact that Jihoon's 7th grade younger brother won the thing with an 18:51 makes me want to quit running. I hate running alone with no one to pace off of. Grrrrrragghrrrr.

With that, it was spring break. Wish I could just bum around the house for a week and chill. Instead, I'm going to southern China for a MISSION TRIP~! which will be cool for sure, but holy crap am I tired. I really need the rest. Having to wake up tomorrow to be at the airport by 6 is not helping matters much. I'm seriously considering not sleeping. Oh well. What's cool about this is that we, as a church group, are not really supposed to be there as a church group. So there's this whole "double super secret" thing about it. But man, I wish I could just stay in Singapore and hang out with my friends. And that makes me... sad.

Peace.

- Doug

"This road that we travel/ may it be the straight and narrow/ God grant us peace and grace from You/ All the day through"

"It's 5:46 in the morning/ toss turning, chest burning, sermons in my head keep reoccuring/ Havin' visions in my head of a kid at the feet of the Father for all the wrong things he did... Now will You take me as I am?"







04/22/06--07:30: Saturday, April 22, 2006 (chan 2243533)

I’m sick. Some kind of “viral infection”, the doctor said. My throat feels… prickly. My head is also all stuffed up. I missed school on Thursday and Friday. I have an MEH test, and Mandarin test, and a Physics quiz to make up.

I’m screwed.

On the plus side, I did start making a dent in my newly established DVD collection. In Kunming there was this glorious DVD store. Ridiculous prices. $5 for a movie? I have no idea if they’re real or pirated (yarrr), but the police station was almost next door. So either all of the DVD’s are real… or they bribe the police. Yeah, it’s probably the second one. I ended buying:

-         The complete Monty Python’s Flying Circus

-         Family Guy seasons 1-3

-         The Office (British) season 1

-         Arrested Development season 1

-         All 3 Naked Gun movies

-         Hot Shots 1 & 2

-         Walk The Line (which for some reason, has a cover in Italian)

-         The Greatest Game Ever Played

-         Wedding Crashers.

So yeah, that’s 4 TV shows and 8 movies. Total cost? Eighty dollars. That’s about how much one season of a TV show on DVD costs here. So, in short, I have a lot of watching to do. It may take me months. Years, even. I might someday sometime post pictures of my spring break mission trip. Might.

But I was telling a sick day(s) story. I watched season 3 of Family Guy and started watching Arrested Development. And… that was not a very good sick day story. I’m sorry.

I also stayed up late the other day to download the entire Postal Service album. It’s so different from what I usually listen to, I can’t stop listening to it.

I’ve also got an Eagle scout ceremony to plan… woohoo? For whatever reason my mom wants me to invite the US ambassador.

I also have to ask a girl to the prom. Like as soon as possible. Like on Monday.

Grrgh.







- Doug




05/05/06--08:19: Friday, May 05, 2006 (chan 2243533)

I feel like I'm stuck in a rut. Pretty much spinning my wheels in the mud.

Bible study at my house today... at 4:30 instead of in the evening because Mark had a church leader meeting. The time actually seemed to work better. Kris, Jon, and now Grant "Gwant Wichey" Richey all showed up. We haven't met in a while... feels like a month or so. Anyway, we did Part Five of Rick "Heh-heh-heh" Warren's video-type study of James, on favoritism and treating people right. Passage was James 2:1-13, I think. This series was the first video series that this guy and his church made, so the setup is really basic. There are references to "this video tape you're watching," and things like that. You've got Rick Warren sitting in a chair, wearing the same tan sweater and jeans EVERY WEEK, Bible and speaking notes in his lap, just talking some good sense for about an hour. There's a plastic plant in the background. The Bible verses and main points that you're supposed to write down appear on the screen.

What I like about this study is that it's not flashy or attempting to be edgy or fashionable at all. Rick Warren here is just this bland-looking, kind of dumpy middle-aged guy with thinning hair and glasses. He's not really photogenic or telegenic. He's not slick at all, the antithesis of the televangelist preachers you see "Live From The PrayerDome!" in expensive suits, nice hair, and a winning smile. Warren is just this regular-looking, average-looking pastor who knows the Bible inside out and is really, really good at explaining what the Bible is saying and how to apply it in our lives. He's an Everyman who talks an hour's worth of spiritual substance. No B.S. No superficial Christian jargon. Just truth.

Since I can't find my copy of the workbook-thing that comes with the study, and I gave the remaining spares to Kris and Gwant, I'll write it up here...

According to Rick Warren, we judge people on four traits:


• Age
• Ancestry (what language they speak, where they come from, whether they speak "good English", race, etc)
• Appearance
• Achievement

That sounds about right.

Judging people and showing favoritism is wrong for three reasons.


• It's unchristian
• It's unreasonable - God doesn't play favorites, so why should you? The Greek word for "favoritism" are used only four times in the Bible. Outside of this passage, each instance is used to say God does not show favoritism.
  
• And most importantly of all, it's unloving.

It's easier to see people as "us" and "them", but it's not the way God intended things to be. I pray to see people as God sees them.

- Doug



05/08/06--07:42: CALVIN COLLEGE~! SCHOLARSHIP~! KA-BLAMO! (chan 2243533)

So on Saturday night, I decided to say "flip it" to Davidson's waitlist, and now...

I'm going to Calvin College! w00t. Set in my desposit on Saturday night, housing forms, medical forms, everything. Grand Rapids, Michigan. I can honestly say I couldn't be more satisfied. I'm going to a God-centered school, everyone is telling me Grand Rapids is a great place... and...

They're giving me a scholarship.

I came home after the Physics B mock (Short version: I somehow survived.) and there's a letter for me from Calvin with the notification inside. Holy crap. $4000. That is some serious cash money. I didn't even apply for anything. And I only have to pull a 3.4 or above to keep it. It also looks like I'm in their honors program as well. I'm going to have to get used to living somewhere with winter (and Michigan winters will be colder than NY winters, uh-oh), but I'm looking forward to every minute.

I've been only able to say this about a few things this year... but this is amazing. For the first time in a long time, I can say that I don't feel the need to worry about what's going to happen anymore.

All my AP's are done, I have only 2 finals to study for, and I'm going to a great Christian college on a scholarship.

God is good.

- Doug




06/04/06--07:11: I AM SO EXCITED I AM GRADUATE~! (chan 2243533)

With graduation and all happening, I feel obligated to update...

So I'm now a high school graduate. I'm done. Done with high school, SAS, and soon, Singapore. 8 years. Why does it pass by so fast when I look back?

Graduation was super great. Aside from the really small hat. The whole time leading up to it, it didn't really hit me until I had to line up at the mark after Tryfon's name got called... and I was pretty much shaking. I think I was shaking when we turned our tassels. About that: I had planned to try to chuck my hat as high as I could, but when I turned my tassel, it came off. So I'm standing there with the tassel in my hand having a "WTF?" moment - and then I realize everyone's throwing their hats. So I'm like "flip it" and throw my hat, only for it to fly off to the right. Not that cool. Oh well. I get to try that again in four years.

So then it was rushing out into the foyer for MONSTER HUGS all around. Quite the bittersweet.

Then there was grad party. That was an experience. First off, it was at Turf Club road, which is probably the only place in Singapore not lit up by street lamps. It was freaking pitch black. The taxi driver and I got confused. Eventually he figured out to drive right through Turf City to get to the gigantic house. I think Alex, David, and me were the only ones not drinking. Yay. So there really wasn't much to do... this band from some nightclub played some covers... they reminded me of the band No Vacancy from School of Rock, what with it being a four-piece band with the lead singer playing an acoustic guitar. He looked a lot like Jason Tsai, if I remember correctly. They closed with "With Or Without You" (big ups) and the shortest version of "Time Of Your Life" I've ever heard (meh.)

At 1:00 or so the juniors got kicked out and the party promptly died. Seriously. The music quieted down and I pretty much hung around for the next three hours. Around 3:30 everyone left. I shared a cab with Sarah home, which was interesting because she was waiting at the bottom of the hill, but I couldn't find her, which resulted in me freaking out while my phone died out on me. For whatever reason, it wouldn't call out. It still won't. Anyway, since I paid for the cab ride with David & Sarah to graduation, Sarah paid on the way back. She go the short end of the stick with midnight fee and all, but whatever.

I'll write about Francisco's party later, but that's how my graduation went.

Peace,

- Doug





06/15/06--05:53: Thursday, June 15, 2006 (chan 2243533)

I stayed up all night playing Mario Tennis.

I have got to get out of the house.



08/25/07--10:29: for future reference (chan 2243533)

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