Day Off

I had a day off last Wednesday. I mostly drove around by myself, snapping photos and taking names. 

Literally taking names. 

Before I left my cabin I ran into my mustached other half, Pivot. And took a picture of the note one of the cabins wrote him.

Then I spoke with Bo (my father).

Connie, the bank teller, helped me handled my monetary business.

Wesley, the friendly gas station attendant. 

Then I went to Starbucks.

Charlie made my tall, vanilla soy latte. 

You can always spot a camp person...Kavu, running shorts, t-shirt, chacos...hitting Starbucks in the off time.

Talked to Deb (my mom) as I drove from Cleveland to Gainesville.

I went to the Verizon store and talked to Wesley, who seemed to hate his life. 

I also spend nearly two hours wandering around a book store and taking pictures of books I want to read.

And marveling at how unique Nicholas Spark's books are. Not.

Went to Chick fil'a and found this, complimentary mouth wash. 

And thanks to a mix up by Imani, I ended up with someone else's meal. So I got way more food than I paid for. I offered to pay the difference, but she said don't worry about it. 

I also tried a peach milkshake for the first time, it was delicious. 

I also went to Plato's Closet and listened to Casey, Madeline and Amanda very loudly search for a dress for Casey to wear to a concert. 

There was also the cashier at Office Depot who was in training and his boss Chris, who seemed over it. 

Then I came back to camp, ate a frozen dinner, and these, and watched Arrested Development. 

Not a bad day.

Inspired by Joy

The most amazing smile. Laugh lines that exploded like fireworks from the corner of her eyes. 

The best part about her smile, was how often she used it. 

Shannon, that's her name and we were not best friends. I will not offend the feelings of those who were by claiming otherwise. We were really only active in each other's lives for one year or so when we both attended a community college prior to transferring to different universities. 

I have talked a lot about the story God has written for us, and the people that intersect that story. Shannon and I had a fairly brief intersection, and this morning, I found out that her life story reached it's end and she is in her glorious epilogue, united with our Savior. 

Here's why I hold on to our life intersection. 

At the time, I was struggling with feeling connected. I was learning how to be outgoing, and she could not have been a more perfect unintentional tutor. 

It's seems cliche to say she never met a stranger, but it's so true. Her explosive smile fell on so many people. She acted like you were best friends in the most sincere way. Her friendship was a gift for that year of my life. 

I learned from her lessons of confidence, of friendliness, of extending love to anyone, of pursuing relationships with God and people. 

I am fighting to process this. My heart hurts for her sweet parents, and her brothers. I know how close they were. I can not fathom having to process this news. But the thing that keeps coming into my mind, is the assurance of Christ. I know that because of Him, His promises, that Shannon is happier than she ever was here, as hard as that is to imagine. 

I know I will get see her again, and pick up our friendship, even better than it was four years ago. 

I know that because of this, I can just be thankful, so thankful, for the intersection of our lives. That I was able to know her. To know her love of life and be inspired by her joy. 

That's it, that's her biggest legacy in my life. 

She left me inspired by joy. 

Read All About It....

What to do when you don't feel well at camp:

1) Fight through it for a day or so with minimum comments and try to get to bed as early as possible.

2) Sleep didn't help? Engage in an inner battle with yourself to figure out if this is imagined due to sleep deprivation or an actual spreadable illness.

3) Go talk to the nurse. Get a plan of action together. Including your distaste of going to the doctor.

4) Keep talking it out. Not just with your hypochondriacal germa-phobe office mate, but with people with a sound mind and equal interest in camp and your personal well being, i.e. directors.

5) Decide that since you and your roommate have similar symptoms and she's been sick for longer, it's time to seek a professional.

6) Get down the hours the walk-in is open and drive to town with said roommate.

7) Discover that she changed her hours in the past week.

8) Drive back to camp.

9) Drive back to the walk-in clinic, whilst making joke, "Just watch, we'll get there and there will be a sign that says, "the doctor is sick, come back tomorrow."

10) Enter the walk in clinic to have the receptionist say, "She's been sick, can you come back later." (Not joking)

11) Make an "appointment" for later (i.e. she writes our names on a post-it note)

11) Drive back to camp.

12) Take a nap.

13) Drive back to the clinic.

14) Fill out paperwork.

15) Discover that according to her standards you are not lazy, but moderately active.

16) Wait while your roommate, who got her name on the sticky note first, sees the nurse.

17) Ask for the restroom, then decide to hold it, because after a day like this, she's probably going to ask for a pee test, five minutes after you handle your business.

18) Discover your roommate has strep.

19) Have your throat swabbed.

20) Wait five minutes then listen while the nurse talks herself into believing she sees a "faint red line" and then try to remain non-committal when she asks if you see the phantom indicator.

21) Go to ingles and fill your prescription and buy 2 pints of blueberries, a bag of dried mango, and a Tobelrone bar while you wait.

22) Drive back to camp and tell the people.

23) Spend 24 hours in quarantine with your same roommate.

24) Sleep

25) Listen to music

26) Forage for food because you missed dinner waiting at ingles

27) Finish season one of Arrested Development

28) Sleep

29) Take antibiotics

30) Sleep

31) Wake up

32) Eat oatmeal

33) Take pills

34) Finish Hercules

35) Sleep

36) Eat food

37) Sleep

38) Start season two of Arrested Development

39) Listen to music

40) Sleep

41) Watch an old Steve Martin movie

42) Lie and stare at the ceiling

43) Decide you get to return to the world at dinner

44) Pack up the room

45) Wait for the kids to clear out of free time at the lodge

46) Write this blog post

47) Watch your stir crazy roommate spring back into action

48) Prepare your "I'm not sick or contagious speech" for your hypochondriacal germa-phobe partner

49) Listen to music and finsh the blog post

50) Go about life.