The Unsung Heroism of the American Tailgater 1.9

When mindless Sunday drivers leave their blinkers on for miles at a time, it's the tailgaters who let their voices be heard. It is that same spirit which created heroes like Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King, Jr., and Justin Timberlake. An yet the term "tailgater" is used as a pejorative label, devaluing a patriotic social movement. It is this name-calling and these scare tactics which have always been used to demonize dissenters. If we let this happen, the terrorists win.

The Zen of Driving 1.7

In the same way the Zen master contemplates eternal paradoxes like, "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" possibly for an entire lifetime before unlocking the truths hidden in the puzzle or determining it's a really stupid question, the Zen driver finds eternal paradoxes in ordinary-appearing yet infinitely ambiguous road signs, like:

"SLOW," "CAUTION," "DO NOT PASS," and "WRONG WAY."

Upon realizing that these signs mean nothing and everything simultaneously, the Zen driver concludes the safest thing to do is ignore them completely.

Bad Drivers Handbook

So I got this desk calendar for a few dollars called the bad drivers handbook. I've decided that this will be away to update my blog more often because I have decided to start posting these bad driving tips and nuggets of wisdom on a fairly regular basis from this point forward :)
So lets get started. (something to think about...this is dry humor)

TAILGATING 1-2.3
Adding insult to injury, the laws devised by the croissant-swallowing socialists at the DMV are in favor of the sociopath who is driving too slowly in the fast lane. When foolish drivers try to clog our nations's vital arteries b driving too slowly, it's the tailgaters who step into the front lines.

IF YOU BECOME A PEDESTRIAN 1-6
How to Get Across a Crosswalk
Look the other way so the driver thinks you don't see him (Only works under the bold assumption the driver cares whether you see him or not).

COMING HOME

My offical days back in Oklahoma will be December 12th through January 16th.
The reason I am coming home for the extended time is to raise more support for the 2010 year. I will be full time at OM and will either work one day a week at Starbucks or I will no longer be employed (its looking more like I will no longer be employed).
I really can't wait to see everyone. Also, if anyone reads this and lives in Oklahoma and would like for me to come over to share what my vision is at Operation Mobilization and what all I'm doing and will be doing next year. Please let me know. But I must warn you, I will also ask if you will be willing to support me monthly for that year :)

R.I.P. Desktop Computer

I have come across a slight frustration at work. My desktop work horse that I have been editing all my videos on went into a coma and is not likely to come out of it.

I was in the middle of editing and had to go to a meeting. So I left it at a stopping point in my work and went to my meeting. Upon return, the screens were black, which normally wouldn't be a big deal because the computer probably went to sleep. But when I tried to wake it up....nothing happened. So then I find out that it turned off and won't turn back on. After sending it to I.T. to take a look. It turns out that the power supply went out and possibly destroyed the mother board. After some research...it turns out that there was a recall on my particular machine that had faulty power supplies that could cause lots of damage to your computer. Unfortunately, that recall has expired a few years ago. So we have to buy a new desktop editing machine that I can work on.

The GREAT news is that my laptop is powerful enough to edit the videos that I'm currently working on AND that I saved all my work to an external hard drive so I didn't loose anything. (I've learned my lesson).

So although HIGHLY frustrating to have to deal with all this now... I'm not out any work, just inconvenience :)

Starbucks

So I'm having a hard time with Starbucks. It seems that my current store doesn't want to work with me. I told them that I needed to go back home for a month to raise more support so I could continue to be out here in Atlanta. The response? You can go back to Oklahoma to do that, but you may not have a place here when you get back. (insert extreme frustration here).
I suppose that this might be a way of God telling me that my days at Starbucks are over. However, I do still want to work for the company and so I've come to this conclusion. The only way I'll be able to continue to work for Starbucks is if I can transfer to another store that will be wiling to let me work only one day a week. That might be a tall order, but I believe it's a great way to see if God wants me to continue my work there. Please be praying for me. I could use it :)

Current Work Load

So in case you were wondering...let  me tell you what videos are currently in the works.
I'm, as I write, waiting for the Transform 2010 video with dutch subtitles to render. I still have quite a bit of work on this project to do.
At the same time, I'm in production on a video for a ministry called "Finishers". This video is going to be a promotional video focused on the retirement age demographic. The idea of the video is to motivate retirees to use their job skills and experience over the years and use them to glorify God in missions.
After these videos are done, I will be working on a video that will help people here in the OMUSA office raise support, because it's not easy to raise support to be a missionary when you'll be living in America :) But this video will show how important the USA office is and how the 115 + fields around the world would not  be able to function with out us.
A video that is almost done is translating the over view video I helped make "Look at the Nations" into Spanish.

So they aren't the most exciting videos to produce right now, but they are just as needed.

ALSO....I will be visiting Oklahoma between December 12th and mid-January. So if you are in the area and would like to meet up and let me share what all God is doing in my life PLEASE let me know. My whole point for coming back for this period of time (besides seeing family) is to meet with people and share the vision God has given me for media in missions.

100 things to do before my life ends (26-50)

26. Go to Washington D.C.
27. Get to a point where I live on half my income
28. Learn how to make doubles (it's a trini food)
29. Go scuba diving
30. Witness a miracle of biblical proportion
31. Ride in a sail boat
32. See the original painting of "the mulberry tree" by Van Gough which is in Pasadena, CA
33. Visit the original Starbucks (Pikes Place)
34. See Niagara Falls
35. Go to Times Square
36. Ride a scooter in Europe
37. Bungee Jump
38. Experience God in an unexpected way through an unexpected medium
39. Give an article of clothing off my body to someone who needs it.
40. Camp in a tent somewhere that isn't at a camp site.
41. Go to Walt Disney World.
42. Go to a BCS college football game (preferably with Oklahoma State playing).
43. Mentor someone.
44. Speak in front of a thousand people.
45. Get my masters
46. Stand on top of the Arc de Triumph (Paris).
47. Learn sign language.
48. Attend an Olympic event.
49. Meet a President of the United States (current or former).
50. Ski on a pair of ski blades.

100 things to do before my life ends (1-25)

So enough people have asked me to put this on my blog that I have decided to go ahead start putting them up. Here is the beginning of the 100 things I'd like to do before my life here on earth ends :)
(these are in no particular order...I put them down as they come to my head).

1. Fill up my passport
2. Get married
3. Live overseas for at least 6 months.
4. Go sky diving
5. Have a kid
6. Adopt an Asian baby
7. Ride the Eurostar under the English Channel
8. Learn a foreign language
9. Drink a Guinness in a pub in Ireland
10. Write a song
11. Publish a book
12. Learn to swing dance
13. Learn to ballroom dance for my wife on our wedding day
14. See my name in the credits of a quality movie
15. Learn to play the piano
16. Sell a photograph that I shot
17. Visit all 50 states
18. See a ball game at Fenway Park
19. Go to the World Cup
20. See the Grand Canyon
21. Ride in a hot air balloon
22. Get my pilot's license
23. Ride a motorcycle
24. Run a marathon
25. Do a multi-day hiking trip.

Revelvant Magazine

I got really excited the other day (thursday I believe) because I got an email response from Relevant Magazine.
About 3 weeks ago, I send an article idea to them about the Dalit Feeding program that OM is heading up. Basically if you give a one-time $25 gift, it will be matched and will feed a child for one entire school year (200 days).  click here for more info.
Anyways, so this is the response I got back from them:

Hi David,

I am replying to your message about OM and  the Dalit feeding program.  We are interested in the work you are doing, and would like to lend our support by spotlighting OM in a feature about confronting the caste system.  It would be part of our Reject Apathy site.

I would like to speak with you further about your work with OM.  Could a phone interview be arranged, possibly sometime next Tuesday?  Please let me know when would be most convenient for you.

Thanks for calling our attention to this.  I look forward to speaking with you.


 So that's pretty awesome. I actually passed the info along to my boss and hopefully we will get them in touch with the India field leader of OM (Peter Dance) who knows best about the program.
I'll let you know what happens as it unfolds.