New Roof

My parents have decided to get a new roof on our house and they started working bright and early today.

Unfortunately, all I wanted this morning was to sleep in until around 9 but starting at 7 there were people making a ruckus right on top of my room. I managed to stay in bed until around 8 before I gave in and realized there was no hope for more sleep.

Throughout the day I was fearful that at any moment one of the large crashes was going to be someone falling off the the roof rather than normal roofing activities. My fears were heightened when I came back from dropping my brother off at work and there was an empty Tecate bottle sitting with the "lunch trash."

We survived day one without any accidents and I'm hopeful day two will be the same.

Second Dinner

Second Dinner is my favorite meal of the day.

In college I would go out and grab something deliciously unhealthy between the hours of 10pm and midnight about 3 + times each week. Moving home has slowed down how much I go out for second dinner but not how frequently I eat it. My mom is the best and always makes enough dinner to have left overs. This generally becomes my second dinner.

Tonight as I process my love for second dinner, the hunger inside of me is growing. I've outsourced this project to Robert. He is currently in the kitchen making something for me. Fingers crossed that its delicious.

Hospitals

I don't like hospitals.

Tonight after club a bunch of us went to the hospital because one of our kids was in the ER. They aren't sure what is wrong but he is in quite a bit of pain (they are thinking maybe appendix or kidney stones?). It was so cool to see high school kids rally around him, I was blessed to witness it. Although this was awesome to see , I don't like hospitals.

I feel strange going to hospitals when I'm not sick. Its like I'm rubbing it in to everyone else how healthy I am. This is probably a crazy mindset but I can't escape it. Not only that but my heart breaks for people who are sick and in pain. Tonight we were in the pediatric ward and there was a seizure announcement. My mind was flooded with images of a child scared and confused surrounded by concerned doctors and loving parents. I'm getting teary just thinking about it again. I couldn't do anything but pray for that child and his/her family.

Jesus, thanks for my health and my families health. You have blessed me in ways that I don't deserve. I give you Nick tonight, be with him and his family as he goes through this and give the doctors the knowledge to diagnose him quickly. I also pray for the child who had a seizure and his/her family. Father, be with all of them and heal them.

Kansas!

Sorry for the missed posts this weekend, I was in Kansas.

It was wonderful. I will recap it for you:

Derek, Ken and Tim got to my house around noonish Friday and we started the drive. 8 hours in a car goes by so much faster with good friends. After a little bit we decided the responsible thing to do would be to download a game on my new phone for all of us to take turns playing. We decided on kitten cannon (best 99 cents I've spent) and took turns playing. Once you got over 1,000 feet you had to pass it off. I will admit that I sucked at first because coordinating the timing while driving was quite difficult. We rolled up to Lawrence around 10 and went our separate ways. I ended up at the Jazz House to listen to a new band, Quiet Corral. That night I stayed at Evan's and made the mistake of sharing a bed with Mafro. He snores. A lot.

Saturday might have been my favorite day in a long time. Started with breakfast at Derek's parents house. Then we went to play ultimate frisbee (Old Dewds vs. Current) and lost. I blame it on our lack or organization when it came to subbing not the fact that on average we are more out of shape. A quick shower then it was off to Jefferson's for lunch before hitting up Anderson family tailgate. Watched a cold and victorious KU game unfortunately dressed for warmer weather. We ended the Old vs. Current Dewd challenge with kickball. This time we won. I played well: scored one of our two runs and sat down in the infield when we were on defense. We capped the night at the Red Lyon.

It was a short 4 hour night before I got up to meet Wendy and Dave for church. After church we went to a new place, Beer Kitchen. Three words: Bacon Bloody Mary. Delicious, I just wish it was garnished with more than one strip of bacon. One strip is NEVER enough. Quickly made my way back to Lawrence to pick everyone up before hitting the road again.

This weekend was perfect but as much fun as it was I know where I am in CO is the right place.

Techmology

The level of technology used by my new area for some reason reminds me of this. I ran my old club with an overhead. Powerpoint seemed like an outrageous luxury and now I'm using a program called MediaShout where I can put my transition music right into the program, its perfect. We also sing along to this program and not a guitar. I love it! All I have to do is download an already made youtube video of the song with lyrics and copy it into the program.

Tonight was boys vs. girls club for Wyld Life and "Girls Just Want To Have Fun" was on the list of songs to sing. My first thought was I love Cyndi but do middle school kids even know who she is? Then I found a Miley cover and it all came together.

Braces

For the last few days my jaw has been hurting. It kinda feels like I got punched in the side of the face and now my jaw doesn't close right.

Basically my front teeth are hitting each other before my molars. I don't know if my jaw is messed up or if my teeth are moving, possibly both.

Today a crippling fear came over me: what if I need braces again?

That would be the worst.

I can just imagine trying to convince people that I'm not in high school when I'm hanging out with the students and have freaking braces. I guess there would be an upside - picking out sweet combinations of the colored rubber bands.

Lets be honest, if this becomes a reality I will be spending the extra money on invisaligns.

YL Staff

I'm pretty sure that today was a glimpse into what full time staff especially being the only staff person in an area looks like. I got up early for a QT and some Starbs then was working by 8:30. I juggled setting up an "office," personal fundraising, planning club, helping leaders write talks, banquet, and Snow Camp. Then tonight we had YL club. Game night, duh. It was a lot of fun but lets just say there is room for improvement. I know I am a perfectionist when it comes to club but I always need to keep myself in check by answering 2 questions: Did kids have fun? & Was the Gospel evident? Tonight it was a yes in both categories so overall, it was a good club!

Currently working on a more permanent temporary office. A huge thanks to Suze for letting me set up shop in the middle of our living room. Pics to come.

Also, I now have a "signature" on my emails it even includes an office number (you know those magicjack commercials? Yep, thats our phone line. I thought those commercials were fake, I was wrong). Anyway an email signature may or may not be the official mark of becoming a real person.

Smart Phones and Church

I went to church today. Its been a while so I figured I should get myself out of bed and make an appearance. Considering I hadn't been in a while, it didn't surprise me that our pastor used smart phones for his analogy. He talked about things that consume our lives other than Jesus. Womp womp. The worst thing was that in the middle of his sermon I got a text message. I wasn't about to check it during the sermon (though most times I would) but even after the service was over I felt like checking this message would mean instant judgement from the 400 or so in attendance. I was not about to be guilt tripped into ignoring my phone after church so I proudly pulled out my phone to see my mom texted me something completely irrelevant.

Also, there is another awesome show about hunting. Swamp People.This has to be the most bad ass show ever. A bunch of hicks just boating around killing alligators. Straight bad ass.

3G, Football, and Swords

Sorry for being quite inconsistent in my posting. I will try and post more regularly and since I have a working laptop again, it should be easier.

I have now entered the world of 3G. I am the proud owner of the Droid X. It was on back order when I (aka Suze) purchased it on Tuesday and wasn't set to ship until the 22nd. But in a nice turn of events the doorbell rang Friday afternoon and it just happened to be the FedEx guy with my phone! I promptly went to the Verizon store to have them activate it and so I could purchase a case. Remember when cases for phones were super lame? I do and I had to differentiate a case for an old flip phone and one for a super fancy smart phone before I was comfortable paying money for it. While I was browsing the rows of special cases the salesman told me there was a deal that if you get 2 accessories, you get 20% off the total. I'm a sucker and walked away with a case which I wanted/needed and a car charger which is totally unnecessary. At least I got 20% off?

Today I sat around and watched football all day. It was perfect. And I even found a new show on discovery. One of the things I like most about watching football on TV is that you can pretty much watch an entire other show at the same time just by turning the channel between plays. Swords: Life on the Line is right up my alley. It profiles commercial sword fisherman just like deadliest catch but for sword fish not crabs. There is a little bit of drama but a whole lot of fish killing. Its funny to me that shows like Whale Wars and that other dolphin one can be on the same channel as this.

WYLD LIFE

Tonight was our first Wyld Life club. It was a bit rough around the edges but super fun! Aside from a week this summer it has been quite a few years since I've seen WL. They are SO TINY; totally forgot that most haven't even started puberty. I am so excited to just love on these kids and let them know that they are worth being loved and that God loves them more than any person ever could. I think my favorite part of tonight was seeing how easy it is to get them excited about anything. I have a great team that is going to change lives this year and really for their entire lives. They have hearts for Jesus, its so evident.

In other news, I forgot to tell you guys the slight awkwardness of my time on staff in CO: There were so many people who were at Castaway this summer who remembered me. The conversation always went like this -

"Hey, were you at Castaway this summer?"

Instantly awkward inside "Yeah!"

"Cool, I totally remember you standing on stage in the spotlight."

I don't think I will ever be totally comfortable with people knowing so much of my personal struggle, things that I don't even tell some of my good friends. Oh well, I guess that is a product of being in life signs.

I also am blogging from my new YL comp. I feel like this area is pretty obsessed with computers because this is the third one I have. One desktop, another laptop and the laptop I'm on. There are also a few more others floating around. Its funny to me.

Busy

So busy but so good.

I think I am currently still in the honeymoon phase with my new job. Everything is new and exciting, I love it.

Monday I had a lunch meeting with Church youth leaders and other ministry leaders in the Parker area. It is awesome that they have a monthly meeting where they work together and pray for the community. Inspiring, really. After the meeting I had time for a quick nap and some food before I was off to my first YL club! It was awesome! We had a pool party at some kid's house and just hung out. Everything just felt natural.

Today I had a "Train the Trainers" meeting which was run by Ray Ray and Ken Knipp. Two guys who are pretty big deals in their own right. Good thing they both like me. Then tonight was my first committee meeting. We had a few things to discuss but most importantly, we are trying to put together a banquet within the next 5 weeks. Crazy.

So, as you can see, I am quite busy but LOVING it.

Well, I Hit Something

The saying is "hit the ground running" and my response is that I hit something but I'm not quite sure I'm running yet.

This weekend was an amazing time of getting to know my leaders and getting inspired to run club well. It blows my mind that club starts TODAY. I don't know any kids and I barely know my leaders but I know and trust that the Lord has big things planned for me and I am waiting in anticipation to see His plan and His will come into fruition.

At this point I am hired but not getting paid because the region's rule is that I need 1/3 in bank 1/3 pledged and working on the last 1/3 of my personal support before they start handing out pay checks. AKA I will be putting the fun in fundraising for the next few months until I raise what needs to be raised.

Also, Leadership Camp gave me bed bugs bites.

Dear Crooked Creek,

Wash your blankets.

Love, Greg Brinck

Leadership Weekend

So I start my job today.

In a little more than an hour I will be in a car heading up to Crooked Creek with my new area! I am really excited but also nervous because I was just thrown into an area without really knowing much about the people there. Well, I guess it is more having extremely limited interactions with them. Now I am expected to be the Area Director, a position I thought was going to take years to get. I know I have the skills to thrive at this but there isn't any easing into it. I'm just in.

In my limited time (a day) of preparation I have come to the conclusion that this weekend will just be a great chance for us to get to know each other. And on the spiritual side, I'm gonna let the Holy Spirit take over and just wing it. I want the leaders to get to know my heart for kids and build trust that I can lead this area.

So, lets just say this weekend might be the very definition of "winging it"

JOB!!!!!

I have one!

Parker YL!!

More to come tomorrow morning. Too tired tonight.

Lunch Meetings

As an unemployed person, I have become a pro at the lunch meeting/hang out. It is the ideal time to see employed friends during the day. 1) They are most likely willing to take some extra time to hang out than a normal lunch and 2) sometimes after work people just want some alone time. To top it all off, I don't have a job or schedule in general so I am always free.

Today I had lunch with Sean. He is my old Young Life leader and friend. It has been so fun to move from being his YL kid to a friend and peer. The best part is that he has been so supportive of my journey towards staff (YL and him had a falling out when I was in college).

Tomorrow, I will be having lunch with the Committee Chair from Parker. He sounded very excited about having lunch and discussing the future. I don't want to get my hopes up but maybs tomorrow's post will be the excited ramblings of an employed person.

Larry Edward Brinck

Today is my dad's birthday. Unlike my mom, I don't have hilarious and embarrassing stories of his recent antics. But I will write what I know about him.

Growing up my dad and I had a very limited relationship (OK, we still do but we're working on it). He is a very strict person with a reserved love and an emotionless attitude. He set the tone for the depth of our conversations which still tend to be right under the surface. There were times when I resented him as a father because I wasn't sure if he really loved me or if I was a burden. Caring, inviting, loving, and sensitive are words I don't think I will ever use to describe him but I have come to know that he will always be a provider who deeply loves his family (even though you have to look really hard to see it) and will fight for them.

I will never forget graduating and hearing him tell me that he was proud of me (the only time I can remember). I am tearing up just thinking about it because my dad might not be tender and hasn't said it verbally but he loves me.

Larry Brinck is not be the perfect father but there are so many qualities in him that I want if I am ever to become a dad.

Hiring Process

Today I met with the Regional Director for lunch. We went over the assessment I took earlier and discussed some of my traits that might not line up with the typical YL staff person. I loved that I was given a chance to discuss my strengths and weaknesses that the assessment showed (they were pretty dead on, fyi) instead of them being analyzed solely by the RD. During our time together I was told the region's uncertainty in placing me in Parker. They just aren't sure it is the perfect fit and it was stressed that I should be placed somewhere I would thrive and not somewhere that was just open. So, I guess its a little more of a waiting game to see if I am a good fit. I pray that the right person is placed in Parker and that the area would grow to be a healthy and financially stable community. If nothing else, it was great to feel cared for by a region during my interview process and to hear how loved I am by the people I chose to be references.

Football Season!!!!

ITS HERE!!!!!!

Tonight I went over to Derek's house and met up with Brian and Ken. We grilled out, drank beers, and watched football. None of us even really cared about the games on (4th preseason game for the Broncos is nothing to get excited about) but tonight was the start of real football season!!

Fall is my fav because it means cooler weather (awesome b/c I sweat A LOT), tailgating (aka grills and beer), and football (God's personal gift to sports).

Some of my favorite specific situations are as follows:

1. Publicly drinking before noon with EVERYONE.
2. Proudly rocking some KU blue every Saturday.
3. Attending Broncos games.
4. My dad and I having tons to talk about.
5. Tailgate food.
6. Anderson Family Tailgate (fingers crossed I make one this year).
7. Elevated amounts of "guy time"
8. Being called out for choosing Broncos over church.

There is literally nothing to hate about football season. Well, I guess its always a downer when your team sucks. Good thing I love the Broncos and Jayhawks! Oh, wait... This might be a long season but I'm ready for it!

Security Deposit

So I got my security deposit back in the mail today. Not exactly the amount I was hoping to see. Enclosed with the check was a list of the deductions they made. $79.35 for carpet cleaning and another $400 for cleaning. $400 FOR CLEANING?!?! We left that place spotless but our landlords apparently disagree. I emailed them today for an itemized list of all charges that totaled $400. I have a feeling they are trying to screw us. I will not stand for this. Oh, and if you think I am a little upset over this you should talk to Joey.

River To Well

For those of you who do not know, some of my friends are hosting their second annual photo competition, River To Well. All the money raised goes to building a well in a village in South Africa. Last year I entered and won an honorable mention! Who knew? It was just a random picture of a cathedral in France. So, this year I was for sure going to submit a few more pics. Maybe I had another hidden gem in the pictures I've taken. Unfortunately, I am a life long procrastinator and waited until today to think about it. (THE DEADLINE IS TOMORROW, FYI). In a tragic event this last weekend I discovered that my computer was no longer charging and died. All of my pictures were on that computer so I had no choice but to take pictures around my house. These are my submissions. I call the set "Larry's Garden" (Thanks for having a green thumb, dad! )

Larry's Garden: Newport Plum

Larry's Garden: Petunia

Larry's Garden: African Violet