Beer me those beans...

So i finally went to volunteer at CHF today. They have volunteer days on Wednesdays and Saturdays to pack food, bag product, etc., and even though i've been interning there for over a month now i hadn't been down to volunteer. Anyway it was a lot of fun. A very well-run volunteer program. So part of the time i was on the FoodPak assembly line next to these cute 10/11ish-year-old boys. One of them was putting cans of pinto beans in each box and the other one was responsible for making sure the cans were coming off the pallets efficiently. The one putting the cans in the boxes would yell "dude, i need more beans! bean me!" i realized later that i was incredibly amused by them yelling "bean me" because it subconsciously reminded me of that episode of The Office when Andy prefaces his sentences with "beer me" even though "it gets a laugh like a quarter of the time." hahaha. So funny. Hm i'm looking forward to the new season of that show.

Now that i'm working 5 days a week i understand why everyone (not students) value their weekends so much. And it's funny...i thought i'd be doing tons of cool stuff with my free time now that i don't have school, but all my free time activities have been very un-glamorous because all i feel like doing is sleeping, eating, reading, relaxing, or some other low-key activity.

Speaking of low-key activities...

i saw "Hairspray" last weekend. i think it's strange how movies can proclaim such a strong message of anti racism while being absolutely steeped in racial stereotypes. Granted the film is based off material that came from a less p.c. era, but still, this whole self-defeating thing isn't new or uncommon in mainstream movies. i guess i just think it must be weird for an actor/actress of color to be delivering lines about the evils of racism while their character dictates they be a sassy Black dancing sister...or something. Shrug. In any case, the movie was entertaining and the dancing was really good. And might i say i was pretty impressed with James Marsden. Who knew that Cyclops could sing and dance so well?

"Let me tell y'all what it's like
being male, middle class, and white..."

Cheryl news ticker...
i got a part-time job posting items to ebay for an antiques store; it should be a fun and quirky job and will provide a little much-needed income | i'm auditing Theology I at EBC and loving it. i'm in the process of going back to square one in a good way with God and the Bible, and i think the class (in addition to more time spent in the Word) will help me learn and re-learn some of the basics | "Bourne Ultimatum" is the best movie i've seen in a long time | i went to the beach and swam for the first time this summer (not counting Israel) in gross water, but it was still fun | i'm enjoying working for CHF so much and looking forward to finishing up the internship program project | i will (somewhat sheepishly) admit that i have now seen both High School Musical and HSM2 and (although i have NO idea why) really enjoyed both | i got to hear the testimony and story of a Holocaust survivor last night and now i want to read her book. (Pursued J. Vera Schlamm) | i need to work out or go jogging or something but it's so flippin' hot. not as hot as some places in Israel, but still over 100 and that's just too hot | i've been spending a lot of time with my sister and her family and that's been so fun | my nephew Micaiah is 7 but can kick my butt in nearly every game on the Wii.

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work. 2 Tim. 3.16-17

if you know me at all, then you know how much i enjoy adding "your mom" to numerous statements. if you know me a little better, then you know that i also enjoy the comic strip Pearls Before Swine. therefore i found this comic quite appropriate to my life.

i finally saw the new Bourne movie today. It was pretty darn good. i think it ended well too. Plus i was glad the parts that could've become really lame and cliche didn't. For instance when Julia Stiles' character is trying to explain why she's helping Bourne she makes some vague comment that thankfully didn't turn into one of those "you don't remember that we were madly in love?!?!" scenes, which would've been lame. Oh and at the end when Bourne is talking to the other assassin, i like how they recycled Clive Owen's line from the first movie.

i started at Children's Hunger Fund last week and it's been going great so far. For the first month and a half or so i'm gonna be setting up an internship program for them, and then i'll probably get moved to another division to do some other stuff. It's a really neat place to work. i'm seeing how amazing it is that CHF can have such integrity and transparency in everything they do, and how amazing it is that they move so much product and do the things they do with the few people they have. The people are so friendly and it's kinda cool working with so many people that love God and people.

Future of Forestry's last two shows with Nick and Luke were Fri and Sat. i went to the Fri show in Laguna Hills since i couldn't make the Sat one in SD. it'll be interesting to see where everyone ends up...

i'm currently obsessed with Eisley. Spence from FoF has told me he really likes them and i'd heard their singles "Telescope Eyes" and "Marvelous Things" but i never listened to them much until they posted their entire new album on myspace a few days ago. www.myspace.com/eisley
i've only heard clips of the songs from their first album on itunes so i don't know if this sophomore release is better, but i just like their sound in general.

camping trip with some of the extended fam!

setting up camp

Cara

my cousin's fiancee and my other cousin

boys digging project

the boys

the girls' table

the boys were obsessed with the fire

the girl pink posse

Mimi, cousin, dad

my cousin's cute hapa baby, Sophie and my aunt

"So you sailed away into a grey sky morning..." (10 points if you can name that 90's tune by that one album 90's band)

This past weekend was my extended family's 2nd annual family camping trip. Only part of our whole family goes but it's still fun. Actually the whole point of the trip is so that all the little kids can see each other and play together. It was nice though. We were at a super plush campsite at El Capitan in Santa Barbara. My parents and I had to leave a day early because I had work today and my parents left for India for 2 weeks. It was a fun day and a half though.

Yesterday, i was standing outside The Habit (a burger place) waiting for my friend to meet me for lunch. This guy walks up to me and says, "You know, South Americans are brown but people don't know that South Africans are black." Had i been more quick to process what he said, i would've done something intelligent like engage him and ask "whatever do you mean, sir?" or at least make a smart remark like, "well that bit of nonsensical wisdom just made my day!" Instead, i smiled awkwardly and said, "oh" and he walked away. i am still puzzled by the situation. He didn't come off as mentally ill or sleazy, and he was a solitary older man (meaning it wasn't some teenage boy trying to be funny and random in front of his friends). He just leisurely walked up to me and made this strange comment with a calm and knowing look, like he was sharing a great pearl of wisdom or something. shrug.

In other news i went to the north San Diego County area today to see my not-anymore-roommate and my sister-in-law's sister and her family, who are visiting from England. Little kids with British accents are too cute. It was such a beautiful day too, and i must once again affirm that San Diego beaches are THE best beaches in southern California. The water is warm and clean, and there aren't inordinate amounts of rocks or seaweed. i think i'm going to add SD beaches to my list of current favorite things...