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| Greetings, random and happenstance readers. I know you to be so because there hasn't been a post on this blog in ages; Xanga is still blocked by ALERT, but that's ok, since I don't really have a whole lot of time to write while I'm down there anyway. At the moment, I'm at home for a two-and-a-half-week period that started Wednesday night; I head back two weeks from tomorrow or Sunday, depending on how things work out. I just finished seven weeks as a Group Leader for Quest (see previous post). My best friend is the head of the program, and my brother has worked with it since its inception in '06, so hanging with them for two months, as well as the rest of the leadership team, was awesome.
I was originally going to simply stay on campus or maybe bunk with those friends I mentioned until the start of Basic Training Unit 40 next month, but then my family decided that yes, it was time to move, and no, they didn't want to do it without me. So I'm back home to help out with that project; the new house is less than forty minutes away, two doors down from some good friends of ours, and we're moving most of the stuff ourselves, short of the biggest furniture. Once that's all done I'll be back in Texas until the end of November, after which I hope to come home, get a real job, and start moving forward with the next stage in life (not to mention figuring out exactly what that is). I'll have my cell phone for the rest of my time at ALERT, so give me a ring sometime, especially if you're ever coming through the Longview area.
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| Something happened this morning that I never saw coming.
I went to log in to Xanga, and I couldn't remember my password.
I guess considering that my last official entry was nearly six months ago, I shouldn't feel too bad, but on the other hand I've had this blog for three and a half years, and I've only changed my password once. All that aside, those of you who aren't on Facebook (a number I'm estimating at about... three) likely have no idea what I've been up to. Here's the scoop: All has gone pretty much as planned since my post in January; I worked on the landscape crew at ALERT for nine weeks, which was a blast, then spent March, April and May as a squad leader for Basic Training Unit 39. This time around was a very different ride from last fall; the upside was that unlike last time none of my guys ended up in the hospital, but downside was that on the whole, the squad didn't get along well at all. But God worked, and they got things straightened out by the end, and praise God, every one of them promoted - even the one who was up until midnight several nights the final week finishing the required memory work.
A week after the new Responders promoted and went home, I graduated from the ALERT Academy, having completed 51 weeks of training. This means that when I go back this week, I'll be on volunteer staff, which translates over into free room and board and permission to use my cell phone and get online. I won't be on as much as when I'm at home, of course, but if any of you ever need to get in touch with me, I won't be anywhere near as inaccessible as I've been for the last year.
The plan now is as follows: My brother and I fly out early tomorrow morning, and as in January, I haven't started packing yet. We'll spend two and a half weeks in leadership training for Quest, a one-month camp program designed to teach 14-17yos how to make the transition from boyhood to manhood without the joke of teenagerdom that some think should come in between. Once that wraps up halfway through August, I'll have a two-week break before Cadre training starts up again. I'm not sure what I'll do during that time; I might hang out around campus and help with odd jobs, but there's also the possibility that some friends not too far from Big Sandy could put me up for that period of time. Anyway, then comes Cadre training and Basic Training Unit 40, which the same brother will be coming through as a recruit, along with some other friends of mine; should be fun. 
The sad part about all this is that, while I'll have Internet access as I mentioned, ALERT's server blocks Xanga, so I won't be able to post while I'm in Texas. I will, however, be keeping up on Facebook, so you can find me there, or give me a call if you want. I'll be back home once Basic ends in November, this time for good; I hope to get a job near my family's place so I can continue living with them for the time being, at least until I'm not broke anymore. On that note, pray for them, because it looks like they're going to be moving pretty soon, probably while I'm gone. And pray also, while you're at it, for me during Quest and Basic, and then for job prospects for me once I get back. To be overly melodramatic, it's a short ride from here to the unknown, but it's gonna be good all the same.
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| You all need to call my cellphone. Yes you, right now! | | |
| Let's see...
It's one in the morning... I'm pulling out of the driveway at 8:00am... I'm halfway packed...
It's sad that this is such a familiar feeling.
You'd think that with all the traveling I've done, in addition to the fact that I spent most of last year at ALERT, I would be a little more prepared by now. But that's ok; I'll get it done, I'll get in bed, I'll get up, I'll get in the car, I'll get to the airport, I'll get on a plane, I'll get to Texas, and it'll be all good. And so will begin another chapter in this adventure that started just over a year ago.
I realize I still haven't told you all about my Basic Training experience last spring. Maybe someday I'll write a book. Or maybe I could just call up those of you that I haven't already talked to. Either way, I may eventually get around to that, and I may not. I may or may not also get around to talking about ERT last summer, Cadre for Unit 38 last fall, the upcoming PC1 (Property Care = landscaping) unit in which I'll be spending the next ten weeks, or Cadre for Unit 39, which I hope to be a part of in March. But at least there you have it. If you're reading this, and have heard nothing else of me over the past few months, that's what I've been up to, and that's what I'll be up to between now and when I'm next able to post, which will be this coming June. (It's not just a matter of whether or not I can get online at ALERT; the server there blocks Xanga, Facebook, and a number of other networking sites.)
I have to admit I miss the days of Verity, when some of my innermost musings found their ways to these pages. Maybe those days are gone, but maybe not; all I know is that they must necessarily be put on hold for now, as a number of other things have been over the past year - plans for a job, plans for music, plans for a relationship, and so forth. But that too is ok; this was God's plan all along, and He's working it out just the way He means to. In the meantime, I'm going to try not to inadvertently throw too many wrenches in the works - not that you can do that to God anyway.
May He bless you, and I'll be back in June.
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| It was only during the singing of "Silent Night," the final song of our new church's service of lessons and carols this evening, that I finally felt Christmas was on its way. The celebration of God's ultimate condescension in becoming fully man has definitely crept up on me this year. I've been running a lot of errands recently, unrelated to the holiday, but I guess all the performances of the three-family choir I'm a part of should have helped me prepare. As it is, I have to stand here and say with the Grinch, "Tomorrow is Christmas - it's practically here!" I'll be spending it with my family at two homes - mine and my aunt's. Presents at my house, food at hers. Works out. God's blessings on you, friends, at Christmas and always!
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