Creating Great Tone in a World Gone Mad...

THE STUART DISCLAIMER: "If you're not an electric guitar player that has a lot of experience tinkering with highly specific components you will waste your life and be confused by reading this post..."

So, I have been doing a lot to mess with my guitar tone and my guitar setup as of late. As you'll probably recall from an earlier post, I purchased a Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue at the new Guitar Center in Fayetteville. This, as I had suspected at the time of purchase, was possibly one of the best decisions/best purchases I have ever made in my life.

Recently, I acquired a new pedal board. I got it from the same place I acquired my old pedal board (Ryan Ceola got rid of it). The plus to this board is that it has a storage compartment that houses all my power supply stuff, extra picks, and what not. So, it's less messy. To make things even less messier, I wired all of my pedals with George L cables (the red cable with gold plugs in the pictures below). So, every cable is the exact length it needs to be. That saves a lot of mess. One draw back was that I don't have room for my Line 6 MM4 on my new board, but I don't really like that pedal much. Adam had a good suggestion for that pedal anyway--we're going to use it for effects on the "speaker mic" (of which either I or Adam will post pics when it's finished).

I also lucked up into another great addition. The other day, I picked up my acoustic guitar from Blue Moon Music. New Heights Church had given me a gift certificate to Blue Moon in order to get my guitar setup to fully install the LR Baggs M1 pickup I got in December (and have had only half installed for 7 months). I thought this would cost about 50 bucks, but it only cost 10. Well, they had bought me a 75 dollar gift certificate. I used the extra 65 bones to buy a ProCo Vintage Rat distortion pedal. The Rat has replaced my old Electro-Harmonix Big Muff (Russian Version), which will now be a part of Adam's guitar setup.

Finally, the last (and probably biggest) change in my setup is in the electronics of my amp. I'm rocking a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, which is a decent amp. The problem is that Fender uses really crappy tubes and biases said tubes really cold. With the help of Andrew Bailey, I replaced my pre-amp tubes (Groove Tube 12AX7's) with a matched pair of Tung-Sol 12AX7's. I replaced the Groove Tube 12AX7 in my phase inverter first with a China 12AX7, but that had a little too much bite for my taste. I took out the China 12AX7 and replaced it with an Electro-Harmonix 12AX7 that sounds phenomenal. Changing these three tubes helped my sound a lot, but today I took the next step. I had ordered a new set of power tubes, and I got them in today. I replaced the GT 6L6B's with a matched pair of SED Svetlana "winged" 6L6C's. To correct the problem of the amp running too cold, I (by which I mean Bailey) re-biased the amp from the 58 mA a which it is factory-biased to 70 mA. This heats up the tubes a lot more, which gives a much better tone. One negative to this change is that my tubes won't last as long, however that's a sacrifice I'm willing to make.

There is one last addition that needs to be made to my setup. While I was still rocking all my old severance pay money from Sam's Club, I purchased a pair of 12" Celestion Greenback guitar speakers. Last March, I purchased two sheets of Baltic Birch wood and all the necessary parts (metal corners, handles, cable, connectors, etc. ) needed to build a cabinet. Basically, I just need to cut the wood and assemble the cabinet. That way I can provide a home for those speakers. I'll use the newly modified Fender Hot Rod Deluxe to power this cabinet. It should sound pretty "ballsy" (for lack of a better term).

Anyway, here's some pics:

Here's the new pedal board setup. It goes Boss TU-2 tuner to vintage Dunlop Crybaby to Keeley-modded Boss BD-2 Blues Driver to an Aramat-modded Ibanez Tube Screamer DX to a ProCo Vintage Rat to a Keeley-modded Boss TR-2 tremolo to a Line 6 DL4 delay modeler. The pedal at the top center is my Fender footswitch.

Here's the new distortion pedal, The Rat. Also, you can get a much better view of the George L cables. I made them all just long enough to get to the next pedal. That way, there's not a lot of excess cable floating around.

Here's the new tubes. They're powered down, so you don't get that pretty orange glow in the pic.

So, I'm Moving to Austin...

T-Ten Favorite Austin Bands:
10. The Butthole Surfers (And the worst band name ever award goes to...)
9. ...And You Will Know Us By The Trail of Dead
8. What Made Milwaukee Famous
7. Daniel Johnston
6. Voxtrot
5. I Love You, But I've Chosen Darkness
4. Explosions in the Sky
3. Okkervil River
2. The American Analog Set
1. Spoon

T-Five Favorite Places I've Eaten At in the ATX:
5. Taco Cabana (Not local, but I love it.)
4. Opal Divine's
3. Santa Rita's Cantina
2. Poke-E-Jo's BBQ
1. Roppolo's Pizza

T-Five Coolest Places I've Been To in the ATX:
5. The Daniel Johnston mural off of Guadalupe Ave.
4. Regal Arbor Cinema
3. Bull McCabe's Irish Pub
2. The Arthouse @ the Jones Center
1. Waterloo Records

T-Five Most Exciting Things About Moving:
5. Settling in to a new house that has a little character.
4. Hopefully meeting some new, interesting people.
3. Experiencing life in a bigger city.
2. Playing, hearing, and seeing music.
1. Striking out on my own, with just God and Adam to turn to.

Michael Jordan, Move Over...

As we all should know by now (even Brett, who only figured this out 2 weeks ago), the world's most popular/famous athlete is making his way to the United States to play some ball. No, it's not Ichiro. It's not Yao Ming. It's not even Dirk Nowitski. It's the one and only, David Beckham.

The ball-bending midfielder makes his Major League Soccer (MLS) debut this Saturday night, and I'm having a little party to celebrate it. ESPN will be airing a special about the man himself ("David Beckham: The American Dream," forget the slight irony) at 6:30 on Saturday. The game, which will pit Beckham's LA Galaxy against his home country's FC Chelsea, begins at 7:30. Feel free to drop by for either the hour special or the game, or both.

I'm probably going to order some pizzas. You'd be welcome to have some for a small donation. Also, bring your own beverages--whatever they may be. I'll have some water if you want it, but it won't be in a bottle.

If you don't know how to get to my house call me or call someone who knows me well, because I'm clearly not putting directions to my house or my phone number on my blog.

SIDENOTE: If Beckham ends up sitting out due to his sore ankle, you're welcome to come over. I will probably not be watching the game.

Kafkaesque

So, I swung by Chick-Fil-A for a sweet tea this afternoon. As I waited in line for what seemed like an eternity (in the negative sense of the word), I noticed a beetle of some sort on the hood of the Mazda. The poor beetle was stuck on his back, struggling to flip himself over. It reminded me of Kafka's "Metamorphosis." Nonetheless, the little guy struggled and struggled. With each failed attempt to turn over, he slid down the hood of my car. Finally, he fell to the ground below. I can only hope he landed on his feet.

I'm Not Leaving Without Bumblebee...

Well, I went to see Transformers tonight. It was pretty much everything I hoped it wouldn't be but expected it would be--pure crap. They tried to throw in some "intentional comedy" in the film. Example: the Autobots trying to hide from Sam's (Shia Lebouf) parents, Sam's mom asking why his door was locked (wink!), Bumblebee "urinating" on a government agent, a George Bush-esque president asking for a Ding Dong, and various other things of this nature. However, the funniest parts of the film were when they tried to get sentimental or tough.

My absolute favorite moment was when the soldiers tried to get Megan Fox's character to follow Sam to a building, but she wouldn't leave without helping a fallen Autobot (Sam's Chevy Camaro). This sparked this soon-to-be-classic line "I'm not leaving without Bumblebee." A failed attempt at being sentimental.

More failed sentiment: Optimus Prime's "Sam, if I fail to defeat Megatron, push the All-Spark into my chest. I will sacrifice myself to save mankind." So much for subtlety. Another great Optimus Prime sentiment: "Sam, I owe you my life. We are forever in your debt." I think they're may have been a little bit of robot tear in his robot eyes in that scene.

How about some failed toughness? Megan Fox's character (Mikaela? What a lame name for a character...no offense to any Mikaela's who might read this blog.) is hauling around the fallen Bumblebee with a tow truck and throws out the one-liner, "I'll drive, you shoot." Classic. A Decepticon is trying to steal the All-Spark (basically the central theme to the movie) from Sam, giving us this well-written and totally believable gem: "I'll never give you this All-Spark!!" My absolute favorite tough line comes from Megatron--the Decepticon leader. Jazz (an Autobot who is an advertisement for the Pontiac Solstice) says to him, "Want a piece of me?" Megatron replies, "No, I want you in two pieces." Then, he rips him in half.

Basically, this movie was everything I really expected: Shia Lebouf making witty comments, Jon Voight committing career-suicide (no wonder Angelina won't talk to him), Tyrese Gibson modeling tank tops, Megan Fox looking like an absolute tramp, the Transformers looking and acting cheesy as ever, and General Motors advertising a variety of cars (Chevy Camaro, GMC trucks, Hummer H2, Pontiac Solstice, GMC Yukon, and surely something else I've forgotten about).

I think the closing moments of the film speak best for the overall tone and quality of the film. Imagine it. Linkin Park's "What I've Done" is slowly fading in. There's a shot of a soldier picking up his baby girl for the first time (she was born while he was at war...tear). Cue up Shia Lebouf and Megan Fox kissing. Pan out. Oh baby, they're on top of Bumblebee (in Chevy Camaro form, of course). Cut to credits. Insert shots of Sam's parents saying funny things to reporters. Back to credits. Cue James Miller laughing.

Basically, this was the third installment of Short Circuit. Just substitute the once-dignified character Optimus Prime (heck, I cried when he died in the animated Transformers movie) for Johnny 5. There's cheap comedy, failed emotionalism, and robots. Unfortunately, the robots of Short Circuit 3: Transformers fail to maintain the likability of the first two installments' protagonist Johnny 5. If you walk into this film with the intention to laugh, you have to give it a higher grade. Unfortunately, I walked in hoping to be surprised by seeing a decent-to-good sci-fi film starring one of my favorite childhood toys. Silly me.
Movie Grade: D+

EDIT: There's one high point to Transformers: the soundtrack features a version of the original theme song by Mutemath. It's worth downloading from iTunes. Luckily, it's not in the movie. So, Mutemath has that going for them.

SIDE NOTE: What is up with the main chicks of Transformers and Spider-man? Both Mary Jane Watson and Mikaela Whogivesacrap are troubled teens that are somehow the most popular girl in school. Mary Jane has a verbally abusive, alcoholic father. Mikaela Whogivesacrap learned to fix cars from her locked-up car thief dad. Heck, she's even got a Juvy record. Let's be honest--that's bull crap. The girls at my high school who were popular had dads who were dentists and congressman and lawyers. They drove nice cars that were paid for, not stolen. Not to mention, Mikaela dresses like a complete skank in Transformers, which isn't really the quality of the All-American cheerleaders that were popularized at RHS (although, they did all go through a short-lived "punk rock" phase thanks to Hot Topic).

Ladies and Gentelmen, Introducing...

Well, I did something sort of crazy today. I'm selling my bass amp to Aaron Hopwood of CFP, and I was planning (or thinking about) using the money to buy a Fender '72 Telecaster Deluxe Reissue with a walnut stain finish. Well, I made a trip to the new Guitar Center in Fayetteville today. I saw the guitar I have wanted for years right there. Well, I bought it. I know I haven't actually sold the amp yet, but Hops is buying it when he returns from Ireland. This is certainly not the wisest thing I've ever done, but I'm a musician (so there's not a lot of wise decision-making in my life). I would imagine that moving to Austin to start a band is probably not viewed as wise either, so chalk up another crazy move to my history. Anyway, here's my lovely new guitar.

Your Boyfriend's Back...

Okay, so I'm not anybody's boyfriend. Boy toy? Maybe. Nonetheless, I'm finally back in town for a long stretch of time. In the past 3 weeks, I've slept in my own bed twice. I left for Waco, TX on the 16th, went straight to Austin, was in Fayettenam for 1.5 days, went to Branson, was in The Ville for 1 day, left for Colorado, returned 1 week later, and I immediately left for Brian & Gennie's wedding in Little Rock.

Well, it was all worth it. Waco was awesome. Austin was fruitful (found a probable house). Branson was cheesy (especially Dixie Stampede). Colorado was beautiful. The wedding was a freakin' blast. All-in-all, I was blessed to have so much to do. I mean, I could've been sitting on my butt playing Wii or watching Friends or Seinfeld DVD's repeatedly. Instead, I had adventures--and plenty of them.

There's just too much to tell you about from all those trips. I guess I shared some Waco/Austin experiences in my last few posts. I mean, what the heck, how about a Colorado story or two?

Okay, this is exciting. We went to Noah's Ark to raft the Arkansas River. [Quick lesson in irony: This is ironic, because you wouldn't expect Arkansans to travel 15 hours to go down the Arkansas River. This would be like someone in Colorado driving to Austin to float down the Colorado River. The outcome is unexpected and thus ironic.] The day started slow. I sort of underestimated myself, and I went in the combo raft (which has a guide with oars). In my defense, I didn't want Mark (a Springdale senior who had broken his hand/wrist) to be the only guy on the combo raft and I was hoping to be able to video some rafting action (the camera ended up not working). Anyway, we were about 5.5 miles down stream when the wrath of God fell from the heavens. I'm not even joking. We had large marble-sized hail for over 45 minutes. I'm not sure the actual amount of time that it hailed, but we were off the river for 45 minutes due to hail. Thus, it was at least 45 minutes of hailing. I experienced the early stages of hypothermia, which was scary and exhilarating all at the same time. Basically, it was the most epic rafting trip ever. It put my rafting trip in Alaska to utter shame.

Another story? Yes? How about a quick summation of the spiritual atmosphere of Timberline? I'm not sure what it is about Colorado, but it seems like it's easier to experience God when you're 8,000 feet closer to heaven. I guess you can couple that with being surrounded by His beautiful creation that serves as a constant reminder of it's Creator, constantly talking about spiritual things with students, and removing myself from the distractions of the world (my computer, my iPod, my cell phone, my TV, etc.). Guess what? I didn't listen to one CD while I was there. I had no idea what Pitchfork was reporting. I made one call the whole week...to my mom, about the application for my house in Austin. I just got the heck away. The kids did the same, and it was amazing. God really broke down some spiritual barriers in some students' hearts. For others, he lit a fire that they'll carry back to the darkness of their schools. It was great. More than anything, people got excited about praying for their schools, for each other, and for the nations. What could be better than that?

Seriously, Colorado was amazing. I loved hanging out with those kids. I loved leading worship all week. It was great getting to spend time with guys like Finley Robinson and John Flowers--who both challenge me and encourage me so much. Basically, I wish I could still be there, but I'm so glad to be home. So, you might remember me posting about being "homeless." Well, I feel home right now. I'm done movin' and shakin' all over the country. It was good to be home, to go to Grove, to hang out with my roommates, and I'm about to sleep in my own bed. Hallelujah.

Also, another quick high point of traveling. The wedding was a blast last night. I had to shatter some traffic laws, but I made it to the ceremony in time. It was an enjoyable (and short!) ceremony. The reception was great. I got a free beer and plenty of free diet cokes. The food was amazing (stuffed mushrooms!!). Dancing with all of my friends was a blast. Also, speaking of irony...I heard a wedding band that consisted of 5 African-American males singing the words "Play that funky music white boy." It was fun catching up with people I hadn't seen in a while--especially a Mr. Adam Argo. I stayed at La Casa Argo after the wedding. Since Meredith was working overnight, Adam and I stayed up late listening to music and talking about music. It was a blast, and it reminded me that I miss Adam Argo. Above all else, though, it was really awesome to get to celebrate the fact that God brought Brian and Gennie together. Soon enough, I'll actually update Gennie's name over on the Blog Roll.

Well, I've rambled enough. I've updated for no apparent reason. It's been real. It's been fun. Heck, it's been real fun, but I'm tired and going to bed.

P.S. - Check Out This Sweet Video

Check out this sweet video "The American Potato Stop Motion." It was made by Andrew Steger (thestegers.blogspot.com). The song in the background is "The Way We Get By" by Spoon (Austin's favorite sons).

Homeless, but Not Houseless

I feel like I've lost touch with the concept of "home." The word feels like nothing more than what it is...a word. It's a word that's supposed to be filled with some sort of mystical quality--a refuge for some, a fear for others. There's something special, unique even about going "home."

I've lost touch with the word. After spending a week and a half in Waco and Austin, I felt a little bit homesick. When I got back to my house in Fayetteville, I just didn't feel like I was back home. I left for Branson for three days, and coming back to Fayetteville still doesn't make me feel at home.

It seems like every single day, my house in Fayetteville feels less like my home. Yet, the thought of going to Austin doesn't feel like going home. It feels like leaving home to go on this year-long, years-long, maybe life-long adventure. I'm sick for home whenever I leave, but I long just get everything over with and leave Fayetteville behind.

It's just this weird transient stage. I've been preparing myself for months to leave Arkansas, but the thought of being somewhere else still scares me. Somehow, I feel good neither here nor there.

I really think it's a mix of fear and longing. I am certainly afraid of what comes next in life. I could move to Austin and become poor, lonely, and a failure. At the same time, I long to get there and prove those fears wrong. Soon enough, I will be in Austin--making it my new home. I have a feeling that once I'm there coming back to the NWA will feel a bit like home--seeing old friends and my family. What I mean is this, this is a weird period in my life--the transition between old and new. However, soon enough, life will be back to "normal" though everything will be new.

Local Music Review

Christmas Fuller Project
The Philosophy of Time Travel

Christmas Fuller Project brings a certain D.I.Y. mentality to the Fayetteville indie scene. The band produced its first demo/EP in the milkhouse behind guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Nick Roland’s house (aptly titling it The Milkhouse EP). The EP was far from studio-quality, so I was certainly skeptical when I heard that the band was attempting to record their first full-length album—The Philosophy of Time Travel—at home. Thinking only in terms of sound quality, this album is undoubtedly one of the best products to come directly out of the Fayetteville music scene.

So, the band definitely grew in their ability to capture their sound in a recording. The question, then, must be whether or not they grew in their ability to write and play music. The Milkhouse EP, while fun for friends and family, wasn’t breaking any new ground and certainly wasn’t the high point of their career. The Philosophy of Time Travel is an entirely different story. It’s difficult to believe that the same band that released Milkhouse last May just released this new album.

What’s changed? The band has literally moved light years ahead (maybe in a time machine?) with their songwriting. Lyrically, the band challenged itself to hit new levels. For the most part, the songs are deeper lyrically—striving for more pressing content and better imagery. Musically, this doesn’t even seem like the same band. The songs are more creative, more developed, and flat-out riskier than anything on Milkhouse (and probably anything done by anyone else in Fayetteville). The band abandons what makes some of their fans happiest (shiny, simple pop music) by providing more than your healthy share of weird studio tricks—synthesized organ lines (“Meet Me in Montauk”), controlled chaos (“Ghosts Are For Graveyards”), jet-engine feedback (“The Part That Lives”), and plenty of backwards craziness (“Prelude” and “Pop Philosophy”).

Roland pushes his ability as a multi-instrumentalist by adding banjo and saxophone to his growing repetoire (which already included guitar, keys, and vocals). Drummer Cameron Heger adds glockenspiel in several songs, which is a great touch. However, like The Beatles, CFP is certainly getting by with a little help from their friends. The band should seriously consider adding some of the guest musicians on this album to their full-time lineup [they already added Tyler Ceola from the now defunct Famous In May, who appears on “Learn How to Die (Country Step)”]. Kassie Sen’s operatic siren song on “Captain Webb vs. the English Channel” and “1875” are the highlights of those songs, but her biggest contribution is her vocals on the Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind-inspired “Meet Me in Montauk”. Caleb Sieck’s violin and Michael Bollero’s cello appear on half the album, and the pair gives CFP more than their money’s worth of quality strings.

The album, which is somewhat of a concept album of time traveling, is simply good. A lot of times, I am guilty of judging local music to a lower standard than the rest of the albums I own. I’m not doing that here. The album—though eclectic—really does pull together into one great piece of music with several highlights. Personally, I suggest listening to “Captain Webb vs. the English Channel” for it’s epic swell and complex nature, “Pop Philosophy” for it’s mostly laid-back pop beauty, “Meet Me in Montauk” for a pure indie rock love song with lyrical depth, and “Try” for it’s sweet fiddle action.

You’re not going to be disappointed by this album. I’m not going to inflate this album so much as to tell you it’s one of the all-time greats, but it’s certainly good. You probably won’t find it on any year-end lists of any major music reviewer, but that’s in-part because they’ve never heard it.

Showing Love With a Granola Bar...

Sometimes I get ahead of myself. Like just about any person in their early 20's staring down the lifetime ahead of them, I have one general goal for my life: change the world. What the hell does that even mean? What am I going to change? End all the wars? Feed all the people? Stop all the hate? Cure all the diseases? Seriously, there's a lot of stuff that needs changing.

I've come to realize that I will probably not do any of those things on any sort of global scale. What I'm coming to realize is that God really wants to use in a big way in little moments. Every day, I seem to be faced with moments to do something great. Most of the time, I lean towards apathy and fear.

Take this past week in Austin. I got out of the car at Ryan's house, and the guys from across the street yelled to us. My thought was to look distant, because I was distant. I really wanted nothing to do with these guys, and I had no idea who they were. I felt a small amount of shame at being so apathetic towards a couple of guys on the porch who were trying to be nice. Okay, fast forward 27 hours. It's 1 am the next night. We're locked out of Ryan's house, and Allen (one of the guys from the porch) comes across the street. He offers us a beer and a chair on his porch--we oblige. Well, we meet Roy (Allen's partner) when we walk up. The refer to themselves as Ryan's "gay pagan neighbors." Allen (who so far has proven himself to be one of the nicest people I've ever met) asks us if we're religious like the guys across the street (who he doesn't really know at all, he says). Adam and I were given a chance to be out-of-the-closet Christians to this gay couple. We didn't judge them. All we did was talk about art and music--we indirectly shared our faith (he asked where I work, which is indeed a church). We didn't do much for these guys except treat them like human beings and thank them for their kindness. I think God probably smiled. I talk a lot about loving the gay community, but this is probably the first time I've ever made good on those words.

I spent a week in Waco working with people in the inner city, and I think it really gave me insight to what it will be like when I live in a big city (i.e., Austin). There are homeless people all over Austin. If I were to give a couple of bucks to every person I saw, I'd be broke in a week. How can I help these people? Even I give a couple of bucks, many of these people are homeless due to addictions. I don't want to give someone 5 bucks to go towards booze or drugs. I had a simple thought the other day. What if I carried a box of those really awesome Wal-Mart brand granola bars? They cost like $1.50 for ten. In other words, for $.15, I can put a small amount of food in someone's stomach. It's not curing homelessness, but there are other means to that. It's providing about as much help as a couple of bucks does. In Fayetteville, it's been easy to pick up McDonald's or Arby's for someone standing near the bypass. Austin provides a much tougher situation. How do you give one person something when there's ten more standing next to him? I know a granola bar isn't much, but it doesn't take much to love.

My point is this: changing the world isn't some grand thing. Every time you do something little the world has changed. It won't get noticed on CNN, Bono won't give you a high-five, Oprah won't pretend to care about what you've done. Nonetheless, the world is different. It's better. I confess that I'm probably going to fail at this on a lot of occasions. I'll probably choose apathy over empathy. I'll probably just get used to seeing homeless men as I get on the bypass. I'll probably grow ignore the gay community rather than reach out to it. Hopefully, God will continuously break my heart for these men--homeless, gay, whatever. I pray that God would break my heart daily for those around me that don't know him. Maybe I won't see a giant revival in Austin. Maybe I won't see world peace. I just hope that I bring love and hope in a practical way wherever I go.

I Just Paid for Wi-Fi, but At Least I've Had an Amazing Week

So, Adam is at his interview with the local Anderson rep here in the ATX. Me? I'm sitting at a Starbucks that's about a half a block away. Can you believe they didn't have free Wi-Fi? I had to pay to use their "T-Mobile Hot Spot." That's pure crap.

On a brighter note, it's good to be in Austin. I've been in Texas for a week now, and I think I can handle the muggy July heat. Pretty soon, I'll be a resident of this state. Crazy, huh?

Anyway, the last week in Waco was everything which I hoped it would be. I painted a house, cleaned a kitchen, sorted clothes, gave a devotional at a homeless shelter, went to a church that meets underneath an interstate overpass (Church Under the Bridge) during a rain storm, played with kids at a 3-day camp at a rec. center in a government housing complex, and witnessed my students at New Heights grow in so many ways. It was amazing.

It's hard to think about spending a week with those New Heights guys and gals then going straight to find an apartment in a new town. I'm really going to miss working at that church, and I'm really going to miss those kids. Leading those kids in worship has undoubtedly been the biggest privilege I have ever been given as a worship leader. If I had to choose 1,000 times between the ability I had to control lights and have bands at Fellowship for 5 years or worshiping with these New Heights kids for 6 months, I'd choose the NHSM kids 1,000 times. When those kids encounter Jesus in worship, it's amazing--whether in a Boys & Girls Club, a warehouse, or a small training center in Waco. I pray that God would continue to teach them to abandon themselves to His glory.

Quick story. We had an extended time of singing on Wednesday night. It was our last night. We wanted kids to have the ability to respond to Him and reflect on their week. Josh put out a bowl of water and a towel, so they could wash someone's feet if they wanted. In the midst of singing, I opened my eyes for a moment to see one of my guys (who never really sings on Sundays) just singing out to God, and I just about lost it. I looked over moments later to see his little sister washing his feet, and I couldn't hold it in. I just cried. I have prayed for these two kids and their brother (who I saw lying prostrate on the floor) for months. I honestly feel that they have more leadership potential than just about any of the kids in our ministry. To see him crying out to Jesus, to see her humbly washing her big brother's feet, and to see their brother lying facedown in worship touched my heart so deeply.

I cannot wait to move to Austin. I'm excited beyond all realization. However, I am daily realizing that there is a lot that must be left behind to get here. Right now, I'm sitting in a Starbucks in Austin. Pretty soon, this will become a regular occurrence (except, probably with a more local coffee house). Yet, I can't help but think about those kids, my job at New Heights, The Grove, the University of Arkansas, my favorite places on Dickson, the way Fayetteville looks at night when you first drive into the city, looking at the Christmas lights on Old Main, and mostly my friends and family. There's a lot to leave behind, but is there ever an adventure that doesn't start with leaving all you've known and loved behind?

Champions...again.

Just thought I'd remind you all that the San Antonio Spurs just won their fourth NBA World Championship. That means they've won four of the last eight championships. The Spurs join the Lakers, the Bulls, and the Celtics as the only franchises to win at least 4 championships.

So, I went to my first Spurs game at the age of 5 (did you know I lived in San Antonio from the time I was three until I was almost eleven?). They're easily the team that I've most passionately followed throughout my life (though, you could argue that I've surpassed that with the Razorbacks). Regardless, I'm excited to be moving back near Spurs country soon. I hope to go to like 10 games next season.

I'm pretty much the only Spurs fan I know (excluding my parents, my sister, and my brother-in-law). I think I met someone not long ago who called themselves a Spurs fan. If memory serves correct, they had jumped on the bandwagon after the 2003 championship. Regardless, it's really exciting to see your team win it all. After 3 disappointing close calls (football, basketball, & baseball) with the Razorbacks almost winning the SEC (& making runs for the National Title), it's good to have a team I love take home some hardware. If the Braves continue their success and the Dolphins climb out of obscurity, this could be a great sports year for me.

The Busiest Summer of All Time...

Okay, maybe not. Actually, I was probably busier last summer when I took 6 hours of classes and worked full time for Sam's Club. Nonetheless, this one's getting busy. Here's my next few weeks.

6/16 to 6/21 - Mission Waco. We're taking 20 people to work with inner city kids and to do work projects at a homeless shelter. I'm going to give a devotional to some adults men and women at a homeless shelter as well. It should be exciting.

6/21 to 6/25 - Apartment hunting in Austin. Also, a possible Polyphonic Spree show.

6/26 to 6/29 - Family fun in Branson. What could be more fun than all eight members of the Miller/De La Rosa family locked in a condo together?

7/1 to 7/7 - Timberline. I was going to be driving to Winter Park. Now I'll be flying from Kansas City to Denver (where I'll catch a van ride to Winter Park). I'll ride the bus back home. It should be a good time out west. I'll be leading worship for seniors at Fellowship.

7/7 to 7/8 - As soon as the bus pulls into Fellowship, I will jet to my house to shower and put on a suit. Following that, I'll jet set to Little Rock for Brian & Gennie's wedding.

7/11 - CLEP test for Biology I. Yeah, somewhere in the midst of all that craziness, I have to study for this test so that I can finish college. Yay.

As they say in the hood, "no rest for the weary." Something like that. Anyway, it's going to be a crazy few weeks. I apologize in advance for not hanging out with anyone on the 2 or 3 days I'll be home.

(Side Note: I'll be iPod-less for the first leg of this trip, which is a real bummer.)

Am I the "Indie Kid"?

It's been brought to my attention that I might be the "indie kid" amongst my friends. My summer roommate David has a friend at Mizzou that we refer to as Indie Kid. He once called Sufjan Stevens too mainstream for his taste. I rest my case.

Regardless, it's been brought to my attention that I could be a watered-down version of this guy. Here's some attributes of myself and occurrences from my week that lead to this possible conclusion:

1. Thick, black, plastic frame glasses.
2. I wear trendy shoes from an independent shoe company.
3. I explained the workings of Broken Social Scene/Arts & Crafts to my mom.
4. I ordered green tea ice cream today.
5. I collect/listen to vinyl records.
6. Bushy, unkept beard.
7. I own a 3rd Generation iPod (that's right, pre-click wheel).
8. My homepage is Pitchfork.
9. This list ends at nine.

Have I lost touch with the real world or am I just the right amount of trendy?

Why are people stupid?

I hate more than anything to get on iTunes and see people complaining that a soundtrack is "album only." It happens with every soundtrack. Either the whole thing is album only or the songs that can only be found on the soundtrack are album only. It has nothing to do with iTunes. This is how movie studios make money off soundtracks. The studios putting out these soundtracks aren't interested in selling individual tracks. People act like iTunes has the greatest power of all the music industry entities. People don't understand when iTunes doesn't have a certain band. Do you think the people at Apple don't want Radiohead on iTunes? Do you think they don't want The Beatles on iTunes? People are just plain ignorant sometimes. Apple would love to sell you individual tracks. iTunes would love to have two of the world's greatest bands. People should understand that--like most things in this country--the music industry is run by corporations. As much as iTunes (and the internet as a whole) is changing the way the game is played, the RIAA and the 4 big corporate labels still have a lot of power.

What Have I Become?

So, my roommate David is obsessed with funnel cakes and corn dogs. No lie. When we realized Springdale's Feather Fest was this weekend, it was pretty much a given that David would be there for some funnel cake & corn dog action.

So, Friday night, four of us headed out to downtown Springdale to take part in the festivities. We all enjoyed a corn dog and a funnel cake. Well, David simply wasn't satisfied. He wanted to go back today for lunch--for two corn dogs. So, I headed over there with him.

All was going well until we walked to the Corn Dog/Funnel Cake booth. As we passed a kid who worked in the both, he said, "Back again, guys?" This is no good. This is sign one that we've become Feather Fest regulars. 10 minutes later, the guy at the window says to David, "Man, you loves these corn dogs. You guys have been here a lot." Then, it was official: we were Feather Fest regulars.

What have I become? I've never felt so dirty in my entire life. There I was in my trendy TOMS (did you know Sienna Miller wears TOMS?) and my D&G thick rim glasses, and I was now a regular of Feather Fest. I thought I was going to have to trade in my Barsuk Records shirt for a Bill Goldberg or nWo shirt. Throughout junior high and high school, I strived not to become one of those--for lake of a better term--tool bags who spent their whole weekend at Frisco Fest. Throughout college, I've avoided Spring Fest all together. Even Tontitown's coveted Grape Festival, with it's fancy spaghetti dinner, I've managed to avoid. Now, here I am: a Feather Fester.

New Kicks...

I just got my second pair of TOMS in the mail today. My first pair were a little small, so I went up two sizes this time. These new size 12 TOMS fit like a dream. Not to mention, now that I have two pairs, that means TWO kids in South America will have a pair of shoes at the end of the year. Awesome. Anyway, here's a pic of my new shoes below. On the TOMS site, they looked orange & white. They're very much red and white. That's cool with me...very Razorback. Also, if you don't know, I've been in this crazy stripes obsession for a couple months. All the shirts I've bought lately have been striped. I bought a blue & white striped seersucker blazer. Now, I even have striped shoes.
EDIT: If you see mine or Adam or Kristen's TOMS and decide you want a pair for yourself, I have a 5% off code that I'm allowed to give to my friends. Just let me know, and I'll give it to you.

Therapy...

I miss playing guitar with a bunch of guys. It's like therapy. Everything that's bothering you in the world comes out through your fingertips into the guitar. This sounds really cliche, but it's true.

I played guitar with Adam last night, but it isn't the same. There's something about having the whole band together. There's something about feeling the music come together. I can't wait to get to Austin. If guitar playing is like therapy, Austin must be the freakin' psych ward.

A Dream Ruined My Day Today...

Today, I awoke from a dream. It wasn't a nightmare, but it was something I feared greatly. Could it be true? Or, are my own fears mocking me in my very sleep? I laid in bed for quite a while--wondering if, alas! hoping that it was only in my mind. Had the darkness that's haunted my mind come to fruition? Was I perhaps a simple sort of prophet seeing my own dismal future? All of it was too much to bear so early in the day. I knew then that my day would be worse for it.