Classes.

Hmm. It appears I'm on a posting frenzy. My blogging ratio is up significantly in this past week or so. I'm having a lot of fun, though, so I'm fine with it.

Anyway, I just thought I'd let everyone out there know what classes I'm officially signed up to take in Fall 2009:

*Ahem*

COM 204 - Nonverbal Communication
COM 205 - Digital Media Lab
COM 206 - Digital Media Production
GLS 203 - Introduction to Global Studies
GLS 386 - Exploring World Cultures: Asia
THE 201 - Introduction to Theology

If you couldn't tell, I'm still trying to decide between a Global Studies (GLS) and Communication (COM) major. My total credit hours would be 16 if I did all those (The Digital Media Lab is worth 1 as an accompanying class to Digital Media Production.) But I'm contemplating dropping Digital Media and taking on Interpersonal Communication if the Digital Media Lab conflicts with my small group schedule.

So, there you have it! Questions? Comments? Feel free!


Thanks for reading,

-Daniel K

Bored One Night....

To Do.

Upon returning to my apartment Saturday morning, I found myself caught up in a cleaning bonanza. Scooter asked me to help him tidy things up, and I rather reluctantly agreed. After having finished the dishes and the trash, I took to Cameron's and my room and began to tame the beast of a mess residing on our floor. In doing so, I uncovered a few different "To Do" lists from this past week. I thought I'd give all you avid readers out there a little glimpse into my day-to-day life through them;

NOTE: These are in no particular order.


To Do
-Go to lunch with Dan-The-Man
-Fill prescription
-Download song(s) for tomorrow's set list*
-Practice said set list
-Read AT LEAST three chs. of Sophie's World
-Read AT LEAST one ch. of Case for Peace
-Study study school's your buddy! (Philosophy and Old Testament)
-Old Testament summaries
-Go to D-Group interview**


To Do
-Go running
-Set up meeting with Dr. Watson
-Write page 2 of short story
-Put up fliers and do sidewalk chalk for Capture the Flag
-Count change jar
-WOW meeting
-Decide on game for Super Outlet***
-Sign up for "A Sacred Day"****
-Get to bed EARLY!


To Do
-Set up meetings with: Carlton, Michael, and Alex*****
-Go to Trash Club
-Go to D-Group meeting
-Go to missions meeting^
-Call Robbie re: trip^^
-SGA meeting^^^
-Doctor's appointment (borrow Big Mike's car?)


Well, that about wraps it up. A lot of it was in shorthand (one line actually read "TC for life!" So I decided to tone down the Daniel jargon.)

Thanks for reading,

-Daniel K

P.S. It's also worth mentioning that I saw the movie Watchmen today and it was mega awesome. Pretty gory and a few super-awkward scenes, but overall it rocked my socks. I highly suggest reading the book first, though.



*Set list = the songs for the church service (or any performance, really.)
**D-Group = Discipleship Group. = a student-lead Bible study group for freshmen. I'm hopefully going to be leading one next year.
***Super Outlet = a once-a-month youth group event where Outlet meets with other youth groups and does crazy crud.
****A Sacred Day = a sweet idea to read the entire Bible in the period of 72 hours by getting students to sign up for 1/2 hour slots and read for the entire 72 hours. It was really cool.
*****They're three junior high guys in my small group. We all hang out once or twice a week.
^I'm going on a mission trip to LA over Spring Break to help out in Skid Row.
^^I'm going to visit Robbie in April! Heck yeah!
^^^SGA - Student Government (I dunno what the "A" stands for...)

Annoyances.

Wow, two posts in the same day. Rare. In any case, I decided to write a quick entry highlighting pertinent assumptions of society that really annoy me.*

1. If you do something nice for a girl, it's obviously because you like her. I mean, let's be real here - No guy holds open doors, compliments, or helps out a girl unless he's got a head-over-heels crush on her.

2. If you compliment someone who's in higher position than you, you're obviously trying to kiss-up. C'mon now... you don't just compliment a professor because he/she gave an awesome message in chapel the other day or something. You only compliment professors because you want a better grade on a test or lenience on a paper.

3. If you don't act just like everyone else and do "normal" things, you have a medical condition which requires medication. See a physician immediately. Similarly, if you are uncomfortable (including but not limited to: pain, tiredness, too awake, or bored,) seek medication expediently. You don't need to feel those things anyway.

4. If you're a freshman, you have nothing of value or substance to offer. Keep quiet.


Grumble grumble grumble,

-Daniel K




*DISCLAIMER: I am in no way saying that all people I know act like this. Just a select few.

Just Wondering, I Guess.

Way back in August, at the advent of my college experience, our campus pastor gave the opening message to boot off the new year.

"God brought me here," he commanded us to repeat after him. What choice did we have? All the students packed into the events center in unison repeated, "God brought me here." We then repreated it four more times, each time emphasizing a different word in the sentence. I thought it was kinda hokey and all, but the heart behind it was beautiful. Pastor Werner wanted us all to realize that God doesn't make mistakes, and even if we were having misgivings about our place in life, to remember that God is sovereign.

Why is it that sometimes I find that truth so hard to live out?

I catch myself occasionally parusing websites for Westpoint or Biola or CU Boulder or Willamette thinking "if only." If only I'd applied to more places, or if only I had done better on that stupid PSAT and become a National Merit Scholar, or if only I had gotten more scholarships.

Careful how you interpret this, because I love CCU. I love the learning, the people, and the the community behind this little campus in the middle of Lakewood. Save for a few classes, I've been extremely impressed with how and what I'm learning. Yet the words of Jeremy keep popping up in my mind; "Good is the enemy of the best." Am I in the best college for me?

This question keeps nagging at me. I mean, there are schools that cost a lot less and have a lot more distinguished programs than CCU. There are universities nationally renown for their (insert area of study here.) I'm doing "good" at CCU, but could I be doing "the best" somewhere else?

"God brought me here."

A most excellent friend of mine* once told me that, "there is no decision you can make that will cause God to throw His hands up in the air and say, 'Aw dang it! This ruins everything!'"

Perhaps I am doing "the best" here...? God only knows. I just wish He'd throw me a bone.**

"I thank my God every time I remember you. In all my prayers for all of you, I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now, being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus." (Phillipians 1:3-6)

Wow. God doesn't mess around when it comes to promises.


Thanks for reading,

-Daniel K



*A most excellent friend whom I am going to visit in April! Holla!
**Or is that He has already thrown it and it's staring me in the face?

The Beginning...

Well, pretty much my greatest dream ever has come to fruition... I've been assigned to write a fictional short story 5-10 pages long! Booyah!

So, without further adieu, I give you the first page:*


The Scholarship

Full of a frustrated sort of relief, Eli stepped forward, squared off against the plain gunmetal door, and shoved hard with his entire body. The illusion of a locked portal vanished with a tremendous clang as the off-kilter door dislodged from the frame and swung open on oiled hinges. Without pause, Eli stepped boldly inside the lit room and absorbed the cramped space in his gaze. A smug look seeped onto his face - he had at last found Ralph.

* * *

The sounds of studying hummed in Eli’s ears. He had always found it strange that such an activity as studying possessed so distinct a noise, yet it did all the same. Pages ruffled, iPods sang barely audible tunes, noses were cleared of debris, and chairs grunted and groaned under the ever-increasing brain mass of their occupants.

Eli moved purposefully through the rows of crowded tables towards his favorite spot in the large Oregon State University library - against the back wall, between the boiler room door and the fire escape. Rounding the final bookshelf, Eli felt a flash of annoyance upon discovering that a couple had taken residence in his spot and were dedicating their study time to canoodling. Given that it was finals week, Eli’s better judgement begged him not to risk causing a scene by attempting to evict them.

As such, it was against his better judgement that Eli cleared his throat and asked loudly, “You two having a killer time?”

The couple hardly broke stride, the male opting to reach his hand up and extend a middle finger in Eli’s direction. “Most excellent. Carry on, then,” Eli replied cheerfully, turning and adjusting his course for the second floor, where his alternate study spot waited.

A flash of hot pink screamed at his eye as Eli entered the stairwell. He shot a look down at his feet and scooped up the Post-It note instinctively. Eli was no environmentalist, but he hated to see litter on campus. He didn’t understand why students would trash the school they paid so much to attend. Out of sheer boredom, Eli glanced at the note as he trudged up the stairs. What he read caused him to stop walking and re-read the note three times;




Thanks for reading,

-Daniel K


*This is my first rough draft and all, so be gentle!

Quote Me!

I'm sitting here in Public Speaking trying desperately to stay awake. You see, I was up late last night writing an essay on the riveting book Islamic Imperialism and I arose from my slumber early this morning to practice with the cross country team before breakfast. So in a last-ditch effort to stay away from dreamland, I've decided to write down some of my favorite quotes from movies. Here goes:


PETE: "Do not seek the treasure!"
GUARD: "Quiet there! Watch the picture show!"
(Pause)
DONNELL: "We though you was a toad!"
-O Brother, Where Art Thou?


TURK: "I'm gonna get out of the car and drop you like third period French."
-Ocean's 11


ARMY SERGEANT: "Is there any reason you shouldn't be in this man's Army? "
MAX: "I'm a cross-dressing homosexual pacifist with a spot on my lung. "
ARMY SERGEANT: "As long as you don't have flat feet."
-Across the Universe


ODDBALL: "We see our role as essentially defensive in nature. While our armies are advancing so fast and everyone's knocking themselves out to be heroes, we are holding ourselves in reserve in case the Krauts mount a counteroffensive which threatens Paris... or maybe even New York. Then we can move in and stop them. But for 1.6 million dollars, we could become heroes for three days."
-Kelly's Heroes


MR. GOODKAT: "Charlie Chaplin once entered a Charlie Chaplin look-alike contest in Monte Carlo and came in third; that's a story."
-Lucky Number Slevin


MORPHEUS: "I know *exactly* what you mean. Let me tell you why you're here. You're here because you know something. What you know you can't explain, but you feel it. You've felt it your entire life, that there's something wrong with the world. You don't know what it is, but it's there, like a splinter in your mind, driving you mad. It is this feeling that has brought you to me. Do you know what I'm talking about? "
-The Matrix


MR. DAWS: "Did you know that I was struck by lightning seven times?"
and
BENJAMIN BUTTON: "Our lives are defined by opportunities, even the ones we miss."



Well, that's all I can come up with for now... and class is wrapping up so I've got to get going to chapel.


Thanks for reading,

-Daniel K

The Biz

So I'm thinking that I've finally come up with my REAL career. No, it's not Private I (that'll be a hobby, along with writing, fighting crime, and hitchhiking.) It's a job where I can choose my own hours, work where I want, hone my skills, and talk to really awesome people. And it's dang simple! How did I find this miracle job, you may ask? Let me break it down for you:

My first challenge was trying to convert a 5-gallon bucket into a backpack. You see, there are few practical backpacks that can hold a huge bucket, some pots, and a bag of drumsticks very well, so I decided to just use what I had and carry everything in the bucket. Not able to find any nails or sharp metals to poke through the resilient plastic, I resorted to a lighter. Heating up the plastic enough, I used the back end of a spoon to push through, creating four holes. Next I hijacked some rope and looped two sections through the holes, creating a way to secure it to my back.

The hardest part of the night over, I bundled up and headed downtown for the night. Traveling by bike, I made my way through the city, by street and bridges and paths, through neighborhoods, by power plants, and over rivers. Arriving on the 16th Street mall at 11 PM, I set up shop across the street from the ESPN Zone and the Cheesecake Factory. Bike, jacket, and bag set aside, I whipped out my best pair of drumsticks, put a pot out onto the sidewalk, flipped the 5-gallon bucket over, and had at it.

It's quite easy, really. You just have to remember that people only see you for 30 seconds to a minute, so there's no need to come up with a dozen different routines... Three or four will do just fine (remember you can always mix them to create interesting combos!)

It was a bit disheartening at first, because few people even paid attention to me, and there was little foot traffic at all. But after long, the Rascal Flats/Jessica Simpson concert at the Pepsi center got over and the traffic increased significantly. At the end of the first hour, I had a respectable amount of change and dollar bills inside my little pot.

At about this time, Nick and Austin (my RA and one of my RARs) caught up with me. You see, the two of them are pedicab drivers, so they spend their weekends peddling bike-drawn carriages around Denver for tips. Nick told me that a lot of people were over on Larimer Square.* I packed up and headed out, making the short hop over to Larimer. I was kicked out of the square due to a city ordinance, but the policeman informed that I was allowed to play right across the street, in Writer's Square. So play I did, for about an hour or so, exchanging words with a few impressed pedestrians.

Finally, approaching 1 AM, I decided to give Larimer another try. As I was setting up, however, the same ploiceman came up and chased me off, but not before informing me that a real good spot was just down the street, at the corner of Market and 14th. I made my way there and set up, doubting the officers words... there was little foot traffic.

But then at about 1:30 AM, the bars and nightclubs began emptying out.** I made about half of the night's wages in that 45 minute time slot (1:30 - 2:15 AM.) A virtual army of drunk people came staggering by in small detachments, dazzled by the quick-paced rhythms and simple but fun rudiments. The pot filled up quickly and I had to start pocketing some dollars to avoid an overflow. As is synonymous with drunk people, ridiculous behavior followed. Some lady completely tripped over herself, eating it on the sidewalk in front of me. A man with a thick hispanic accent looked me straight in the eyes as if he were on his deathbed and said, "Follow your soul, man. I'm not even American, but you gotta follow your soul." He then proceeded to walk out into the busy intersection, though the glowing red hand protested. A very short women came up to me, almost in tears, and dropped 5 dollar bill in, saying, "God bless you. My brother does this. You gotta have some real balls. God bless you."

By 2:15, the streets were deserted so I packed up and met Nick and Austin at Writer's Square to head home. We enjoyed completely car-less ride through downtown*** to the Car that Nick and Austin drove in earlier. We hooked our bikes onto the rack and headed toward CCU.

I dunno if it was during the peaceful ride through downtown at 3:00 AM or on the cramped car ride home during our awesome story-swapping session or when I counted my money to find I had made $81.50 and a can of Copenhagen in 3.5 hours, but sometime during that night I decided that this would be an excellent job.

So basically, it’s the ideal career choice for me. I can have fun, be out late, and feel free all at the same time. I guess all that remains would be to change my name to something more adventurous...


Thanks for reading,

-Dan-O The Bucket Boy, Street Musician





*Larimer is where tons of bars/nightclubs are located.
**Places that serve alcohol must be closed by 2 AM in Denver.
***Seriously... It was like I Am Legend. No one was on the streets, so they were completely open to us... Weaving between lanes, through red stoplights, and up one-way streets.