i've never had no outlet like this.
soon, i will be inflicted with word vomit.
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j.wiebe
23 January 2008
19 January 2008
by the numbers
here is the uk by the numbers...
1. 10 hour plane ride on virgin....loved it
2. 14 hour sleep day....went to bed last night 5:30pm, woke up today at 7:30am
3. too many to count people i have met
4. 2 really good friends in george and pete, my hope teammates
5. 1 pub called the olde queens head where i can grab a nice cold guinness...its become the local watering hole. even though we were only there for 30 minutes. one time.
6. 1 trip to manchester for a house-warming party, where i will meet tons more people
....i am feeling solid about my time so far. a pictoral journey of halesowen, my home right now, and a weekend in manchester will be up soon. i love each one of you.
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j.wiebe
1. 10 hour plane ride on virgin....loved it
2. 14 hour sleep day....went to bed last night 5:30pm, woke up today at 7:30am
3. too many to count people i have met
4. 2 really good friends in george and pete, my hope teammates
5. 1 pub called the olde queens head where i can grab a nice cold guinness...its become the local watering hole. even though we were only there for 30 minutes. one time.
6. 1 trip to manchester for a house-warming party, where i will meet tons more people
....i am feeling solid about my time so far. a pictoral journey of halesowen, my home right now, and a weekend in manchester will be up soon. i love each one of you.
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j.wiebe
16 January 2008
and so it is.....
i am sitting in the lax international airport lounge about ready to board flight vs024 on virgin atlantic to london. after an unbelievable trek from pasadena to lax, we made it, i'm here, i'm ready to go. i have been extremely nervous and jittery. its my first time in a foreign place so i cut myself some slack. i got me a passion tea lemonade from starbucks to calm me down and i took an airborne. now, its only about entertaining myself for 10 hours......i do have sonic the hedgehog, the office season 3, gangland and this american life at my disposal as well as a myriad of movies. i love you all. the next time will be from across the atlantic.
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j.wiebe
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j.wiebe
15 January 2008
gone baby gone
i leave approximately 30 hours from now for london. much is still to be done while in the states. i am on the verge of something monumental.
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j.wiebe
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j.wiebe
14 January 2008
at this point i don't know what to think
things happen expeditiously.
after some prodding and poking, a vengeful telephone call with an outsourced visa worker and more contact with government employees than i have ever had in my life, my visa is coming tomorrow. i actually found it was my fault i had been waiting so long. a part of the visa application process to the uk is submitting your biometric data, which essentially means getting your photo taken and giving fingerprints. i went to the us citizenship and immigration services support center in fresno, the nearest to my residence. this was where my completed application email directed me, as well as (so i thought) my application, to go. so i submitted those 3 weeks ago and sent off my application to the same place the next day. you would think i would have more common sense in where i send something so sensitive, seeing that it has my passport and social security card with it. i was supposed to send it to the british consulate in LA but seeing that the only address listed on my form was the fresno support center i sent it there. it proceeded to sit in their offices for 2 weeks over the holidays and was finally forwarded to the consulate last wednesday. i received approval for my visa friday.
i feel somewhat sheepish and embarassed at this, especially since i missed out on yfc's staff conference this past week, where i would have been able to make friends and establish connections for the coming year. regardless, i will be on a plane headed to birmingham in the uk on the 15th of january at 4pm. its quite exciting.
in other news, i spent several days with really, really close friends. a couple days with the bergens in shafter. a day and a half with tim, nikki, rob and homeless mike in pasadena. i just got done hanging out with bryan and jesus. we hung out at the railroad tracks, came back and watched the office and had some french press. its these little things that are exciting to me now.
i'm really not sure what to think about all of this business. i feel like i am floating (not literally.....well, maybe literally) and that i will land wherever i am supposed to.
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j.wiebe
after some prodding and poking, a vengeful telephone call with an outsourced visa worker and more contact with government employees than i have ever had in my life, my visa is coming tomorrow. i actually found it was my fault i had been waiting so long. a part of the visa application process to the uk is submitting your biometric data, which essentially means getting your photo taken and giving fingerprints. i went to the us citizenship and immigration services support center in fresno, the nearest to my residence. this was where my completed application email directed me, as well as (so i thought) my application, to go. so i submitted those 3 weeks ago and sent off my application to the same place the next day. you would think i would have more common sense in where i send something so sensitive, seeing that it has my passport and social security card with it. i was supposed to send it to the british consulate in LA but seeing that the only address listed on my form was the fresno support center i sent it there. it proceeded to sit in their offices for 2 weeks over the holidays and was finally forwarded to the consulate last wednesday. i received approval for my visa friday.
i feel somewhat sheepish and embarassed at this, especially since i missed out on yfc's staff conference this past week, where i would have been able to make friends and establish connections for the coming year. regardless, i will be on a plane headed to birmingham in the uk on the 15th of january at 4pm. its quite exciting.
in other news, i spent several days with really, really close friends. a couple days with the bergens in shafter. a day and a half with tim, nikki, rob and homeless mike in pasadena. i just got done hanging out with bryan and jesus. we hung out at the railroad tracks, came back and watched the office and had some french press. its these little things that are exciting to me now.
i'm really not sure what to think about all of this business. i feel like i am floating (not literally.....well, maybe literally) and that i will land wherever i am supposed to.
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j.wiebe
10 January 2008
the man from jacksonville
ryan adams is playing at starbucks. i think i am in love.
yes, yes i am.
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j.wiebe
yes, yes i am.
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j.wiebe
rolling through a--->b life
one of my favorite bands over the past 8-10 months is mewithoutYou. it took me a while to get into them but once it clicked, the game was over. in their lyrics, i find the prophetic and the mundane, mashed together like a song i couldn't sing. i have listened nearly exclusively to their latest release Brother, Sister and the album just before Catch for Us the Foxes. I have decided with my time spent in Starbucks today, I will listen to the entirety of their debut album A-->B Life. So far, I enjoy hearing the place from where the band came.
More on a thought in musical progression in a bit......
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j.wiebe
More on a thought in musical progression in a bit......
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j.wiebe
my media guide
just woke up. its 10:48am. this is actually rather early for me. currently, i am stuck in the 4-5am through noon-1pm sleeping schedule. the world sometimes looks better at 3:30am. at least my neighborhood does.
current situation: my visa has not come in yet. bummer. i mailed it off about 3 weeks, the government says its supposed to take 2 weeks and here i find myself, still in reedley. there was a restlessness for a time, mainly around last weekend which is when i was supposed to be going, that has been replaced with an assurance that i will get there when i need to get there. all of this free time affirms my notion that i could never be a housewife. too distracted too easily. and i spend too much time in thought and not on action.
with my free time, my media intake has heightened considerably. i have been working my way through season 5 of seinfeld as well as select episodes of the office season 3. (thanks to tim.) i watched superbad last night with a few friends. needles to say, it was quite vulgar, over-the-top dialogue-wise, and imbalanced in character development. there are few times when i become uncomfortable with language. this was definitely one of those times. enough of that. i have also downloaded seasons of gangland and this american life from the itunes store in anticipation of a long plane ride to the uk. also, i am about 3/4 of the way through jesus and nonviolence: a third way by walter wink. i find his thesis and supporting arguments compelling, to say the least.
this is feeling like one of those 'several blogs in one day' days. more to come.
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j.wiebe
current situation: my visa has not come in yet. bummer. i mailed it off about 3 weeks, the government says its supposed to take 2 weeks and here i find myself, still in reedley. there was a restlessness for a time, mainly around last weekend which is when i was supposed to be going, that has been replaced with an assurance that i will get there when i need to get there. all of this free time affirms my notion that i could never be a housewife. too distracted too easily. and i spend too much time in thought and not on action.
with my free time, my media intake has heightened considerably. i have been working my way through season 5 of seinfeld as well as select episodes of the office season 3. (thanks to tim.) i watched superbad last night with a few friends. needles to say, it was quite vulgar, over-the-top dialogue-wise, and imbalanced in character development. there are few times when i become uncomfortable with language. this was definitely one of those times. enough of that. i have also downloaded seasons of gangland and this american life from the itunes store in anticipation of a long plane ride to the uk. also, i am about 3/4 of the way through jesus and nonviolence: a third way by walter wink. i find his thesis and supporting arguments compelling, to say the least.
this is feeling like one of those 'several blogs in one day' days. more to come.
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j.wiebe
07 January 2008
ode to sunshine
in the last month or so, i have been listening incessantly to delta spirit's debut full-length ode to sunshine. the key tracks include the razor-sharp 'trashcan', a wandering, guitar-driven 'people c'mon', and the nearly-U2 influenced 'children'. its worth at least a listen......or twelve.
06 January 2008
jackie and dunlap's take
...they were burning down the stadium during 'just as i am'......
hahahahahahahahaha.
love comes to me
love comes to me/
and that is all.
b (prince) billy.
i'm dealing mostly in expectations these days. expectations of preparation, expectations of friendship, expectations of continual communication, expectations of being somewhere that i didn't expect.
my friend likes to say that the kingdom of God/the Church should be continually speaking to culture in a way that is edifying and prophesying an alternate way of life. A way that is full of healing, hope and restoration.....something that I don't believe most of us, when left to our own self-motivation, have much care for. does it come down to a fundamental decision of selfishness/selflessness, meaning you either choose one or the other and consequently become your choice, or are there varying degrees of a processing towards that way? I lean towards the latter. Sort of a 'one or two steps forward, two steps back' sort of idea.
An intriguing idea is the concept of 'in the world but not of it'. At this point, I have mainly been told this means that Christians are not supposed to participate in activities that tradition/morality deems 'worldly'. "I don't smoke, I don't chew and I don't go with girls who do".....Its one way to understand the concept of separation from the world through behavior. I have begun to understand the phrase in another sense. Could that mean that Christians, because of their reception of compassion and grace from Christ, are 'not of this world' because of their love for others, regardless of specific actions, labels, qualifications? God has given us something called 'love' that I honestly believe has the ability to change how the world works, how people are treated by others, how we ultimately function. In understanding the phrase in this context, Christians' separation from the world would come more from the love, compassion and their character rather than the specific activities they do/do not participate in. It could be that there are elements of both that are true. I am dissatisfied with this explanation of my thoughts. I'll take a crack at it later.....
In other interesting news, Huckabee and Obama have established themselves as their parties' respective frontrunners. I will not hide my allegiances: I like Obama. I think he is pretty cool. From the things that I have read and watched, I recognize that he is attempting to bring a new type of politics to America, less intent on fundraising, mudslinging and toeing the party line but working toward practical and philosophical change to bring us to a place where American society is holistic (education, health care, economics, human rights, criminal justice, etc.) politically. Everyone should be cared for. Politics may be broken but I like what Barack is saying about what needs to change.
More than that however, I am encouraged the most by what both Obama and Huckabee said after their victories about getting past the polarization of American politics to a place of teamwork between Republicans and Democrats, a unity that hasn't been seen in the last decade or so. There is a good article about it here.
Oh and if you haven't checked out these guys for a laugh, you need to do so at once. Red State Update booya....
for those who want to know my situation in england, i am not there yet. i have not yet received my visa from the British government and am waiting until then. I have been packed for about a week now. There is lots of restlessness and anxiousness stirring in me that has been mostly subsided by the presence of loving friends, loving family and my own introspection. I think the thing that I am bummed about most is missing the Staff Conference in Wales, where everyone from YFC gathers to spend time together. It would have been great to be introduced to so many people and make connections. I can't wait to get there.
My current lists.....
Currently reading:
Jesus and Nonviolence by Walter Wink
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Ezekiel by Ezekiel
The Secret Society Handbook by Michael Bradley
Currently watching:
This American Life on HBO
Gangland on History Channel
Arrested Development Season 3
Currently listening:
Bright Eyes-Cassadaga
Bonnie Prince Billy-The Letting Go
The National-Boxer
M.I.A.-Kala
Ryan Adams and the Cardinals-Jacksonville City Nights
and that is all.
b (prince) billy.
i'm dealing mostly in expectations these days. expectations of preparation, expectations of friendship, expectations of continual communication, expectations of being somewhere that i didn't expect.
my friend likes to say that the kingdom of God/the Church should be continually speaking to culture in a way that is edifying and prophesying an alternate way of life. A way that is full of healing, hope and restoration.....something that I don't believe most of us, when left to our own self-motivation, have much care for. does it come down to a fundamental decision of selfishness/selflessness, meaning you either choose one or the other and consequently become your choice, or are there varying degrees of a processing towards that way? I lean towards the latter. Sort of a 'one or two steps forward, two steps back' sort of idea.
An intriguing idea is the concept of 'in the world but not of it'. At this point, I have mainly been told this means that Christians are not supposed to participate in activities that tradition/morality deems 'worldly'. "I don't smoke, I don't chew and I don't go with girls who do".....Its one way to understand the concept of separation from the world through behavior. I have begun to understand the phrase in another sense. Could that mean that Christians, because of their reception of compassion and grace from Christ, are 'not of this world' because of their love for others, regardless of specific actions, labels, qualifications? God has given us something called 'love' that I honestly believe has the ability to change how the world works, how people are treated by others, how we ultimately function. In understanding the phrase in this context, Christians' separation from the world would come more from the love, compassion and their character rather than the specific activities they do/do not participate in. It could be that there are elements of both that are true. I am dissatisfied with this explanation of my thoughts. I'll take a crack at it later.....
In other interesting news, Huckabee and Obama have established themselves as their parties' respective frontrunners. I will not hide my allegiances: I like Obama. I think he is pretty cool. From the things that I have read and watched, I recognize that he is attempting to bring a new type of politics to America, less intent on fundraising, mudslinging and toeing the party line but working toward practical and philosophical change to bring us to a place where American society is holistic (education, health care, economics, human rights, criminal justice, etc.) politically. Everyone should be cared for. Politics may be broken but I like what Barack is saying about what needs to change.
More than that however, I am encouraged the most by what both Obama and Huckabee said after their victories about getting past the polarization of American politics to a place of teamwork between Republicans and Democrats, a unity that hasn't been seen in the last decade or so. There is a good article about it here.
Oh and if you haven't checked out these guys for a laugh, you need to do so at once. Red State Update booya....
for those who want to know my situation in england, i am not there yet. i have not yet received my visa from the British government and am waiting until then. I have been packed for about a week now. There is lots of restlessness and anxiousness stirring in me that has been mostly subsided by the presence of loving friends, loving family and my own introspection. I think the thing that I am bummed about most is missing the Staff Conference in Wales, where everyone from YFC gathers to spend time together. It would have been great to be introduced to so many people and make connections. I can't wait to get there.
My current lists.....
Currently reading:
Jesus and Nonviolence by Walter Wink
Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky
Ezekiel by Ezekiel
The Secret Society Handbook by Michael Bradley
Currently watching:
This American Life on HBO
Gangland on History Channel
Arrested Development Season 3
Currently listening:
Bright Eyes-Cassadaga
Bonnie Prince Billy-The Letting Go
The National-Boxer
M.I.A.-Kala
Ryan Adams and the Cardinals-Jacksonville City Nights
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