Backtracking

Ok, ok, ok. So I was going to end my blog. Well I'm not sure I'm ready to do that just yet. But I think the postings will definately become less frequent.

In the meantime, I took this photo whilst out walking the other day and I just though it really showed how amazing this world is. Fantastic.

And before I finish, I was catching up with current affairs the other day and came across a fact that blew me away in its magnitude.

Apparently President Bush is pushing for improved fuel economy in certain vehicles in the States - 4x4s (SUVs) and People Carriers (Minivans) etc. Now I will say that this is great - any move to reduce fuel consumption is a bonus at the moment. But the article that accompanied this story mentioned just how much of an effect this move for improved fuel efficiency would have. Apparently, by ensuring that these cars will be capable of 23 mpg rather than 21 mpg, some 10 billion gallons of fuel will be saved each year. I'll run that one by you again - 10 billion gallons a year.

That figure blew me away. What is even more staggering is that most European and Japanese cars are capable of at least 32 mpg and above. Just think how much larger that 10 billion figure would be if the President had pushed for that much of a change. But still, all credit for any move to save fuel. Nice...

Merseyfest

Thus it is that I end with a post about Merseyfest. Merseyfest is essentially a Christian mission/community outreach project based in the five boroughs that constitute Merseyside. It has been running for the last week throughout the area.

As such I have been helping out with a project based in my home town of St. Helens. Basically my home church's youth group, along with two groups from Liverpool and Leicester, has been working to clean-up a piece of wasteland in a dilapidated region of the town. And its been a great week. Through things that seem so simple (clearing a path way, painting fences, planting trees, clearing away rubbish) the team have made a major impact on the area.

Plus for my church's youth group it has been a fantastic week of fellowship, helping them to grow together and also introducing them to some really nice people from outside of the town (unless you live in St. Helens you have no idea how great that is for these guys).

It has been a marvellous week. And as a final end to this blog perhaps you could pray for:

The project - that it will have a lasting impact on the community and on peoples hearts.

The kids - that they will be able to continue to grow in their Christian faith and also in their fellowship with each other.

And... That this won't be the only time St. Helens is visited by such an event.

Ok guys. Thats it. The End.

The Sun-Setting...

So here it is. The end of my blog (well not quite - I thought I'd ascribe that honour to my Merseyfest post). And I must admit its been fun delving into the blogging world for the last few months.

But. All good things must end. In my case thats so 'all good things' can begin. By that I mean I can now spend a LONG time blogging and not much time working or praying etc. So its time to put a limit on things.

So dearest reader. Thanks for taking the time to observe my simple observations over the last few months. Its been fun.

Bad Haircut...

Yesterday I went for a haircut. Why? Well my hair was begining to take on 'epic' proportions and was attracting too many 'when are you going to get your hair cut?' comments. One girl at Merseyfest even offered to cut it with a pair of hedge clippers!!

So, inspight of me personnally being a fan of my dishevelled look, I went and had a haircut.

And... I now have the strangest hair-cut ever - well not really. But it is odd. I'm certainly being overly vain about it, but my hair just looks 'wrong'. And I can't work out why.

Theres not much I can do about it now other than wait for my hair to grow. But it does confirm one thing - that I cannot get a good haircut. Some people can and some people can't - I certainly fit the latter group. I don't even blaim the hardresser - I just have 'unfortunate hair' (I think thats something Bill Bryson said).

The Lakes...

Ok. Well I went to the Lake District last week and it was great. Very relaxing and the scenery was fantastic... Don't believe me? Well here is a picture to prove it. Nice.

Cricket

So I want to talk about cricket. It is a wonderful, magnificent game. I know, I know. The usual comments regarding cricket go along the lines of 'It is SO boring'. And yes - there is some truth in that.

But over the last few weeks I've been watching the 'Ashes' test series. For those not in the know the 'Ashes' is a historic competition between Austrailia and England, contested over a series of five day matches. And while that sounds long-winded and slow, it is riveting stuff. Exciting, dramatic, and all very British. I love it. So, so good.

If you are American you can probably find it on ESPN 42: The Redcoat Channel or something. Check it out...

And this man - pictured - makes it all the better. He is Adam Gilchrist, the Aussie wicket-keeper and he is a funny man (though I would imagine unintentionally).

Holiday a coming...

Tomorrow I leave for a week in the Lake District which will be fantastic. It is a time to rest, relax, and just generally chill. I will be able to head into the mountains, wander around the lake, or stroll in the woods. I can go scrambling on rocky outcrops and take photos till i'm blue in the face. A local pub will allow me eat delicious food and enjoy a fine pint of local ale. So in other words it will be a great week, and I am really looking forward to it.
On the other hand I approach it with some trepidation. Why? Well I am massively behind with my Uni work and I need to get it done. This simple, basic and also terrifying fact is resting uneasily on my mind. Furthermore the week will be a lonely one. I am with family but I am the youngest by some 25 years and that shows when you are in an isolated part of the world. However... It will be a good week.

Today has been a quiet one. I had a peaceful morning watching cricket while my parents where out and about. The afternoon included a random trip to Liverpool. In the evening my dad let me drive is car which was COOL. He has a Landrover Freelander (basically a small 4x4, or SUV if you are American) and it is great. So, so fast and so much fun. And I get to drive it to and in the Lakes. I am a happy man at the moment. Oh and I also dismantled a wardrobe. As you do.

Laters...

Musing...

I wrote a HUGE entry here before only to go to post it and - deep breath - it didn't post. Honestly, I reckon it was approaching 1,000 words. But - maybe its best it didn't make it to the published stage.

Anyway, here are a few assorted notes on the various things that I've been thinking about today.

1. Fuel. Petrol in this country has risen to an extortionate amount since I was last home and using my car. Today when I went to fill up it was 89.7p a litre. For our American friends that is about $6 a gallon. Yikes!!!

2. Teaching. I went into my mum's school today to help her get her classroom ready for the forthcoming term. All I was doing really was mundane tasks - sticking name labels on books etc - but it started me thinking about how much of a stressful job teaching is these days. Teachers aren't just teachers - they are mentors, managers, accounts, artists, IT specialists, and particularly in Primary education, are required to be experts in many, many subject areas. They have demands in time, stress and responsibility similar to professions such as Law and Medicine and yet recieve much less pay than lawyers, doctors etc. In short I have the highest respect for teachers, and would have to think very, very, very hard indeed before choosing the profession myself.

3. St Helens. My home town. Its been discussed here before, and I'll start by saying that it has many problems. Its run down, and full of scallies for a start. But the people are so, so friendly - this always take me aback - and my particular part of the town is so nice. The colours of the fields, the fresh air, the feeling of space - such a welcome change from Liverpool.

And, thats it...

R

Proverbs

I've been flicking through the book of Proverbs recently. And I just want to say I love it. Out of all the books in the Bible (which incidently is full of good stuff on every page) I have a real affinity for Proverbs and the book of James. Don't know why but hey. If you get the chance check them both out. Have a quick glance through. Ah go on.

Going home....

So later on today I'm going home to spend some quality time with my parents, enjoy the wonder that is my car and take in the rarity that is 'space'. All three of these are tremendous blessings in that I can go home and enjoy them, and, that they are so close to hand. My housemate Evans pointed this out before and its true. I am lucky.

And boy do I need them. Well maybe not the car - thats an added bonus. But seeing my parents will be nice. Why? Well first of all I really think that I need to go home to 'honour my parents' - to spend some quality time with them. This is something I feel I do not do well at the moment. Secondly its just so different being home - you get 'looked after' in a way that just doesn't happen at uni. Or infact in real life. Getting 'looked after' has obvious irritations - theres nothing like sensing like you've lost your freedom, even if that freedom is doing your own washing - but its something that we get few opportunities to enjoy and those opportunities are slipping away fast as we all get older.

And as for space then man do i need space - space in our house is at a premium right now. Hard to find and even harder to keep. Don't get me wrong. Its been a lot of fun living here over summer so far, but I need some breathing room. And I should be able to get that a plenty at home.

Anyway. I'm going home ladies and gents... Nice.

Ford Mustang

This is a nice car. It is a Ford Mustang 2005 and if I lived in America I would very much like to own one. Hmm... Nice

Revelationary moment

Good morning. Ever have one of those revelationary moments? You know... A moment of sheer utter and total 'whoa'. Well i've just had one - well maybe it was a few hours ago, but the whens and wheres are unimportant. What is important is that I had a moment of revelationary 'whoa'.

And the revelation? Well it was one of 'how incredibly lucky am i?'. Self-centred yes, but hopefully self-centred in a thankful way. I am thankful. Thankful for the incredible and blessed life that I am able to lead at Uni. Thankful for my amazing parents. Thankful for my good health. And- thankful for amazing people that I am so richly blessed with in my day-to-day life.

Nice thought to begin my day with, and, in addition to a most welcome phone call, it somewhat justifies my so far sleepless night.

And the gang at said wedding. Left to Right - Moll, Yaqi, 'The Pong', Cass, and Samo..

Wedding...

Yesterday, I went to a wedding. And a fine wedding it was too. Here is a wee snapshot of the over-the-moon bride and groom and their equally ecstatic parents.

Whats the craic with ye?

Ah hello there? Whats the craic with ye today dearest reader? I hope all is well and good in your everyday experience with this world that we live in.

So here is a little summary of my thoughts and experiences of the last week or so...

Firstly, I actually managed to make some progress with my work - only a fraction of what I need to accomplish ultimately, but progress nontheless.

Secondly, in preparation for the proper game that is cricket and England's regular opportunity to hammer the Aussies at it (hopefully anyway), I ended up watching two wonderfully obscure sports from the US of A. They were 'Slam Ball' (Basketball with trampolines. Ha!) and Extreme Dodge Ball. And they were most amusing.

Thirdly i've been enjoying have a relatively quiet, straightforward week. With weddings, posh meals, and, sadly, funerals to attend, life can seem a bit hectic sometimes. So to have a week of just being in Liverpool was most welcome. Nice.

Fourthly i've had a week of missing Americans - thats right Americanos - I miss you guys...

And lastly i've become hooked on the tv programme that is Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. This is embarrasing of course, but, I actually really like it. For a long time I held out as a cynical Brit - but now. Hooked, line and sinker...

And on that - laters innit

Mates from 'ome..

This delightful bunch to the left are my mates from home. I had hoped to get a picture up a while ago but never quite got around to it. But - here it is. We all look a bit young (this was taken four years ago when we were all 18 and just finishing sixth-form college), and I don't see some of these guys anymore. Nonetheless - my mates from home ladies and gents...

At the movies...

A new computer - a new blog...

So a bit of movie theme tonight. To start with we (my house - give or take the odd one) have just been to see 'The Wedding Crashers'. For those who don't know this is the new Vince Vaughn/Owen Wilson tale about two blokes who... well they crash weddings in the interest of general merriment. And after a slowish start it was a very funny film. A bit dodgy in parts but very good.. Plus it had a Will Ferrell cameo - always a good thing.

On a more serious note I watched 'Hotel Rwanda' last night. This is essentially the story of a Rwandan Oscar Schindler, who against all the odds, managed to shelter over 1000 Hutu and Tutsi refugees through the genocide that took place in Rwanda in the mid 1990s. And it was a deeply moving film to watch. Equally it was incredibly shocking. As a whole it captured remarkably the horrendous scale and brutality of the genocide. It also highlighted the complete pointlessness of it all and more disturbingly, the complete lack of assistance from the western powers. It tooke Tutsi rebels to end the bloodshed, while we western nations stood by and watched.

It made me feel very, very sad indeed.

Techological breakdown....

A quick blog today since i'm on Danny's computer - thanks Danny.

So today i've been computer hunting...and come away with two cd's. Hmm... Something went wrong there. But. They are good cd's - Amos Lee (based on an enthusiastic recommendation from at least two Americanos) and Jason Mraz. Very relaxing...

The lack of a computer has also highlighted just how lucky and...spoilt, I am. And in a strange way it has reminded me of how significant and awe inspiring God is. By that I mean we come to depend on these wonderful and yet remarkably annoying man-made machines and then they fall apart - but God's amazing provision continues.

Of late i've felt that the computer has started to take over my life - i need it to work for one thing, but, also with some very dear people to me being out of our fine land, i see it as a key form of communication. MSN, e-mail and blogging et al. But as consequence of this I feel that i'm taking my focus off God and onto the computer. Sounds odd I guess but seriously - instead of praying or reading the bible i'll go onto the net for the millioneth time that day to check my e-mails.. Not good.

So maybe I need this technological break?

Anyway - laters...

R

So. My computer just died. This is one of those moments when the word 'bummer' is definately justified. I'm writing this on my mate Samo's computer for which I am most definately grateful.

However I had hoped to start some long-over-due work tonight. As in essay writing. This is no longer a viable option really.

Ne'the'mind. Tomorrow I shall head into Uni to use the computers there, before heading into town to check out whats available in the world of computers these days..

Fun, fun, fun...

Dr David Wood

A proud man with his tractor...