on getting comfy

for the first time in a long time, i have my own room....actually, amanda's still in here....but there's only 13 days till the wedding......

anyway, so i am now living in the garage.....with hardwood floors....sharing a bathroom with only 2 sisters....and built in bookshelves.  it's the highlife, lemme tell you what. 

 i think it's truly hilarious.....the light in here  is basically one of those industrial looking lights....long, cylindrical bulb....two out of four are burned out....powered by an extension cord and suspended by bungee cords.  none of the walls are finished....the floor is half done.  we took the garage door apart, nailed it to the outside, and put sheetrock on my side of the wall.   oh but it is my room....i stained my unfinished bookshelves....so beautiful.  and i actually like the ceiling a lot.  i feel like i'm in the bowels of a ship for some reason.  

something more than a snickers

"We are half-hearted creatures, fooling about with drink and sex and ambition when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.”

my friend cas once told me that when we are feeling discouraged or lonely or just plain disatisfied....and this is VERY paraphrased....that it is God drawing us back to Himself.  i've been realizing lately how truly lonely going to church has been lately.  so far, i've shrugged it off as me not having enough friends....or when i get married, it'll be better...which those are valid i'm sure.  but, i think it's God trying to use dissatisfaction to get His kiddos to their knees.  my friend suz and i were talking about the lack of family in our church....we wanted to know what we could do about it.  i've been thinking about it all day.  the only thing i can say is pray.  pray that God would bring us out of selfish habits and self-focused attitudes and give us a burden for the weak and hurting around us.  that He would fill us up and pour us out for the lost that come in every week.  that He would give us passion to pray everyday for the people in our lives.  He is the source....where can we go and what can we possibly do without Him?  He has the power we need....more importantly, He has the love we so desperately crave.  and He gives it all to us without question.  i think my biggest problem is apathy....i'm willing to just get through church....get home and do something for myself.  if i could challenge anyone reading....it would be that you gotta fight through the apathy....pray until you are passionate about the Lord and those around you.  pray until your church is a family, daily encouraging one another and united in love.  pray until the messed up relationships are healed again.  pray until every need is met.  pray until your friends are saved and then pray until they go to heaven.  pray without ceasing!!!!!  

a startling discovery

in the midst of a really fun time hanging out with my lil' bro.....wrestling, running around the house, taking pics with photo booth, dancing to the gummi bear song....to those who have not heard it....you are missing out....anyway, in the middle of all this....he puts his arm around me in perfect assurance states that i'm a good boy. unfortunately to this i had to point out that he had made a tragic error.  "you're not the same as me?"  "nope, sorry kid".  whaddya say to that?  i don't know....kids are great though aren't they?  i really can't imagine living in a house without them...life just seems so real and new to them all the time....and jeremiah retain his amazingness despite his lack of attention to detail....haha

how walmart ruined my life....and sept. 28th will truly rock my socks off

so.....these last couple days a question has been burning in my mind. why do i hate going to walgreens...long's and stores like that? i really hate it....maybe not hate it out loud....but definitely a sub-conscious distaste for them. first of all.....i don't even know what they sell...hotcakes? turtledoves?
anyway, every time i go.....i feel so lost. like the world is ending and all i want is someone to tell where to get toothpicks. i've never gone into any one of them and not had to ask where what i need is. it's disturbing. 
but i figured it out.......
i have been going to walmart my entire life!!!! there has never been, in the 6 or 7 odd places i've lived that there hasn't been a walmart. am i for walmart taking over the planet? no.......BUT....i realize now that i am humboldtian?....that i must adapt and overcome....and bring jen every time i go somewhere to lead me through the jungle of mid-size stores. 
anyway, on september 28th SWITCHFOOT will be playing in Sacramento....which is yes....over five hours away.....BUT....holy cow....i've never seen them in concert...and couple that with the horrific lack in concert going as of late......i am pretty psyched. already have the next day off...i'm running at night to get in shape for 4 hours of jumping....i need to work on my screaming though.....that's what really gets you. my hair is freshly rocked out though....so i should be good.

a bit to chew on

"that you put off, 

concerning your former conduct,

the old man which grows corrupt 

according to the deceitful lusts,

and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,

and that you put on the new man 

which was created according to God,

in true righteousness and holiness."

Ephesians 4:22-24

some things i love

I am blessed with the world's most awesome family. I love them so much and am daily growing to appreciate every quirk and difference of opinion. I love that I am one of a very few people who know how funny Amanda is. I love that me and Alyssa get along great....most of the time! :) I love how Sarah looks up to me but doesn't want to be as dorky. I love that Josiah is utterly oblivious to 50% of what is going around him. I love that Jeremiah is so completely awesome in so many ways. I love that my parents have always been real about their love and their trials. I love that Dad will force a fun vacation on the family and it works. I love that Mom would adopt every kid on the planet if she could. 


I love Jesus Christ. I love the consistency and solid rock of the Word of God. I love that He is true when every man is a liar. I love that He won't leave me in my petty sins to wallow. I love that He gives each day as a new chance to live in Him. I love that He never lets His children to fight alone if they seek Him. I am loved with an everlasting love and underneath are the everlasting arms.


I love trying new things....whether new instruments, new foods from Nate and Jen's table...tee hee....or artsy things. I love playing music and sharing music with people. Switchfoot and Copeland are two bands that I can listen to over and over again without getting sick of them. I love the sound of a really loud open E chord. I love the feeling of kicking a soccer ball square on the foot. Perfection. 


I love the sky in general. I love Humboldt county. It is so beautiful. Even on the foggiest day, Sequoia park brings a smile to my face. I love the sunsets. I love the drive to CR at the end of the day. I love the stars. I love hanging out with people who are cool with just laying on the grass and staring up at the sky. I love that heaven is even better. 

Cassie (a more thankful person than she was a few months ago :)

a lil' something i'm doing again

so, back in the day...when i was but a lowly freshman in high school and i had fallen in love with the Word of God for the first time...i used to read the Bible and every time i came across a verse that hit me i would write it out in my little "super-spiritual" notebook :)  anyways, i've started doing that again and it's such a blessing....here's some reasons it helps me....

• i'm a huge visual learner and when i write it out, i have to read it a couple times over....which helps me get it somewhat memorized
• as i write it, it also helps me think through the meaning of the verse a lot more...and it's relationship to the surrounding verses
• even if i don't memorize the verse, i can memorize the general location of it if i need to find it later

i'm just writing this because i like to learn about other people's ways of studying the Word....i think this has been the best way for me so far.  if only because it makes me take my time!  

happy eight day!

man, i am so psyched....today is the bestest birthday ever!!!!!!!  not really anything in particular happening....amanda got me some undies.....some girly undies at that....sorry, won't be posting a pic.  anyway, it's really cool and i'm totally running at 90mph.  anyway, i do have to clean the mrotzek house now, so i should go, but having a great time otherwise!

loyalties and evolutionary left-overs

so.....since i have so much brain power available while i work, i was able to flesh out a little argument......

first off.....it really really really ticks me off when people, especially Christian people, bash on America.  it's something that i've noticed a lot since i moved to California and a lot more since i moved up here.  i realize that the war and health care and race and a whole number of things are an issue.....BUT this is our home.  this is where we raise our kids, where we are going to grow old, where we buy property.  our forefathers moved here for financial and for some, spiritual freedom.  while i believe this culture is deteriorating at a fast pace, as is the rest of the world, we need to believe in our country....if only because it's ours.  patriotism doesn't slack off because what is being stood for is not doing so hot.  i will still be a die-hard fan of the denver broncos even if they never go to the play-offs again.  to be more practical....if you're gonna whine and complain about the sad state of affairs.....get out of your house and make a difference.  being sarcastic and negative isn't going to do anything for anyone.

deep breath.....

okay, so also....my mom has had some kind of mass in the "upper abdominal cavity" for a couple years now.  basically, it's just uncomfortable and she's been trying to get it investigated for a while.  so, she goes to this doctor in town and he says "ya' know how dogs have nipples running down their bellies.....well, in utero, we have these nipples and this mass is left-over breast tissue....there's nothing we can do"......oh my gosh, i wanna smack this guy.  

first of all.....i wanna see the pictures of a BABY (not fetus) in utero with nipples on his belly.  second of all....take a flip-flapping biopsy and see if it really is breast tissue.....otherwise i would really like to know that my mom doesn't have some crazy disease.  thank you for your time and peace out!  i think it's funny that these open-minded evolutionists are willing to blame anything and everything on some imaginary evolutionary process.  

okay, that's enough passionate opinion for today....

what's the difference?

so, right about now i'm not too psyched on this whole bridal shower thing.  between picking out decorations, buying an endless amount of gifts and supplies, and trying to get a good gift for amanda.....i've had it.  but the main question after an hour at bath and body works is....what's the difference between body cream, body lotion, and body butter????

copycat

since cas is much cooler than the average person...and she has a blog, i've decided to get one too....hahaha.  i think i'll mostly be mostly sharing awesome books, quotes, and music that i've discovered and fallen in love with....along with hopefully a few of my own "original" observations n' shtuff.