Tornadoes in College Station!

I was driving from Blinn to A&M tonight after class to go to devo when I heard on the radio that there was a tornado warning for Brazos County. Once I got onto University Drive, I could see the wall cloud and a funnel trying to form. It was pretty cool to see. Here is a picture:

Granddaddy's Blessings

This last Saturday, Dad and I went to Granny and Granddaddy's old home to do some yard work. When we pulled up, the first thing we noticed was the beautiful flowers that had sprung up in front of the house, where Granddaddy always planted and tended to his flowers. Seeing those flowers was just a simple reminder of the beautiful legacy that he left behind.

Leadership Training for Christ

LTC is over and done with!!! Micah, James, Conner, and I signed up for LTC Security this year thinking it would be all fun and not too much work. Well, it was still fun, but it was a lot more work than I expected. From noise complaints, to kids peeing off of balconies, to kids running around on the roof of the 13 story building, to kids throwing 2 liter soda bottles and soda cans at cars from their balconies, to people pulling fire alarms... it was a long and tiring weekend! Now, I get to wake up for work at 6:40 tomorrow morning.

Security set aside, it was truly a blessing to see all of the kids at the convention praising God with the many talents that were showcased. Going back this year really made me miss participating in it. I miss that opportunity to use my talents. I realize that as I get older, I will start using those talents that I developed in LTC to lead the church. Leadership Training for Christ actually works.

Chef Paul

I decided to be a chef today. I made some parmasan baked tilapia and steamed some veggies for lunch, and it was actually good! Best thing is that it's only around 400 calories. I've been shopping better and exercising so that I can lose some weight. I want to get down to 220 by this summer so I don't feel bad about taking my shirt off at the pool, haha. Here's a picture of my lunch:

David and I are going to try to train for a half marathon in December. So far we haven't been very successful, but we'll pick up the pace. I'm really aiming to get in better shape over this summer so I can be ready for the recruit fire academy in the fall. I've heard that you can run a half marathon after you're done with the academy so I figure I better start now!

Running from Roaches

Last night, I went into the bathroom and saw a cockroach just chilling right on the edge of the cabinet door. I decide I better slam it shut really quick to kill it. Bad decision! As soon as I closed the cabinet door, the roach ran from it and started flying. I'm stuck in this bathroom with a roach flying around me. Now, I don't mind roaches when there just there or walking around, but flying roaches freak me out! I see it fly down to my side so I turn around but I can't find where it went. I finally walk by the mirror and see the roach on my back! I immediately start yelling, "Someone help me... QUICK!" Patrick comes running out of the MANCAVE and is trying to figure out whats wrong. Michael also comes out of his room to figure out what all the yelling is about (I think I found this more shocking than the roach being on me). I tell Patrick to get the roach off of my back and turn around for him to get it off. Then Amos yells from the MANCAVE, "It's on your front!" I look down and it's right there. Finally Patrick flicks it off of me and the thing goes crawling under the fridge. Michael sprayed some stuff under the fridge and killed it. What a night!

So I decided I had better get in shape to prepare for the day the roaches invade the house. I ran 2.7 miles this afternoon and did some pull-ups, push-ups, sit-ups, and weight lifting. I'm a little tired, but I'm still going to play tennis with Tyler tonight. Bring it on roaches!

Life (couldn't think of a title that will fit all of the random stuff)

First, I'll start off with the bad news. I had to let the mission trip to Africa this summer go. In order for me to afford to pay rent and stuff next year, I have to work over the summer. If I take 4 weeks off to go to Africa...well I wouldn't have a job to take time off from. I decided that it is best if I stay in the US and work over the summer. This was an extremely hard decision to make! I told Kelly Davidson and Traci Wilson that I will be passing the role of trip leader onto someone else on the mission team who has been to MITS before. I absolutely hate that I committed to being trip leader and I had to end up not going, but things have changed since I committed last semester. I will continue to help the team prepare for the trip and I'll be there to wave them goodbye. P.S. - Mom and Dad, part of the team (those not from DFW area) will be staying at the house in Irving the night before they leave for Africa since they are leaving from DFW Airport. I feel so disappointed after Chris Flanders came to College Station and got me all pumped up about going to Africa to serve, but I will use the wisdom he has shared here in America, it doesn't only apply to Africa.

Time to move into the better stuff. Tonight I had Fire and Arson Investigation class and it went pretty well. The only thing that bugs me is that our professor's lectures are 80% war stories, but sometimes they are entertaining. We just now moved into actual investigations of structure fires. Up until now, we've just been learning about the chemical properties of fires, fuels, and ignition sources. Tonight was the first time I think I've actually enjoyed that class.

I'm looking forward to spring break next week! I'll enjoy a week of not working or having any school work to do. I think I'm going to go to the fire station sometime during the week, once with Chief Robinson so we can play tennis, and once with Jim Welch just cause it's fun. I'm leaving this Friday after work, and I'm going to pick Granny up in Temple. Aunt Kay, Uncle Allen, Granny, and I will all get to have lunch at Cracker Barrel, then Granny and I will make our way up to Irving.

I sent in my application to be a head guard for the City of Irving again this summer. I will be making $10.05/hr if I get the job. That's $20.10/hr on holidays like July 4th because we get double pay! I'll be making a lot of money, but I'm saving it up for rent next semester.

Speaking of rent... Micah, Conner, Jeremy, and I will be living together next semester in a house on Park Place. It's owned by the Alaniz's and it seems really nice. It has 4 bedrooms and 4 bathrooms, so we each get our own bathroom. We will share a kitchen and living room. My favorite part is that there is a dish washer!

I'm really excited about an opportunity to attend the fire explorer's conference at the Tarrant County Fire Service Training Center during the summer. It will be a week long and I will get a lot of good experiences from it. We will be doing some live fire evolutions, which means they'll set a room on fire and we go in to put it out. We will also use the smoke filled building from the live burns to practice search and rescue in smoky conditions. This will be really good for me because it will get me in the mind set for the fire academy during the Fall semester. At least I'll have a recent reminder of just how hot it gets and I won't be completely surprised once I get into the training fires. They are also having a course in Arson Investigation, where they set a room on fire, let it burn, and then let you go into the room to determine the origin and cause. This will be a great chance for me to practice what I'm learning in my Fire and Arson Investigation class this semester. Another course they have is in Rope Rescue. We will be rappelling and doing mock rescues from the high-rise building at the training center. There will also be a course in swift water rescue, which is what I'm telling my pool supervisor that I'm doing during the week... shhhh. Lifeguarding will be a piece of cake after this course. The last course they offer is in SCBA (air tank) zero visibility procedures. They put you in a smoke filled building and teach you techniques to conserve your air supply. This would be used in case you get lost inside a fire and are waiting for the other firefighters to rescue you. They will also teach us about going up and down stairs in smoky conditions (harder than it sounds), freeing yourself from entanglement like wires and duct work, making your way through narrowing passageways, and following hoselines to safety. I'm hoping that I don't discover that I'm claustrophobic during all of this!

Another great thing: I will by applying for the Fort Worth Fire Department in April. The civil service exam is in May and then the interviews come after that. I don't think that I will get the job on the first try, but it will be a good learning experience for when I apply for Dallas FD in November. I'm really just using Fort Worth for a practice run.

I hope everyone is having a great week and thanks for reading this rediculously long post!

-Paul

Summer Missions Retreat

The Summer Missions Retreat was this weekend. It is designed to help teams bond and prepare before going on the trip, as well as give some helpful tips about mission work in different cultures. We had Chris Flanders come speak on Friday night and again on Saturday morning. I introduced myself to him this weekend and he didn't recognize me at first, which I didn't expect since it has been several years, so I gave him a reminder. We started talking about David, Kristen, and Ava, and how David will be taking some of his classes in grad school. It was neat to talk to him and catch up. We didn't get to talk long before he started speaking in front of the group. Wow, what a blessing to have him speak to us! Some of the topics he hit on are:

• Mission work is very dangerous... spiritually. It will challenge you in many ways, so be prepared for that.
• Jesus is the message, it's not about materialistic stuff, the church, sin management, and it's not all about me. While some of these things may follow, we must remember that the gospel is about Jesus.
• Jesus is the way that we engage the world, not by promising a better life or simply inviting people to churchy things, but by sharing his story.
• He used Phillipians 2:1-11 to illustrate what our goal is in mission work.
• Jesus becomes downwardly mobile and empties himself completely, he does not grasp onto the idea of being equal with God, but rather lets go of that to become nothing.
• As missionaries, we must give up those things we cling to that keep us from immerseing ourselves in the culture so that we may be effective in the mission field.

Here are some of the topics Chris Flanders, Kelly Davidson, and Tracy Wilson presented to us to better prepare us for our work.

• God is already in the places we are going; we are not bringing God to these places, but rather letting Him use us to spread the good news.
• Have realistic expectations; don't expect people to be baptized after two weeks of you being a missionary in that place. Being overzealous can be very dangerous and can push people away from Christianity. Short term missions only work if they are in support of a bigger picture or a long term ministries.
• Use the gifts God has given you.
• Seek to understand the culture. Americans like to see how fast and efficiently we can get tasks done. Other cultures may do something "the hard way," but it may be very important to their social lives or the traditions of their culture, and not done solely because the task needs to be done.
• Missionaries like to teach, but learning should be their first priority. Learn the culture and the way things are done. Don't make judgements or assume that the "American" way is the right way.
• Enjoy the time that you are there and immerse yourself in the culture. Don't shy away from opportunities to spend time learning the culture.
• Our actions should reflect christianity. Practice what you preach. Be a servant. Don't complain. What we do is what people remember.
• Do now what you will be doing there. Let your faith be continuous, not selective.
• Approach everything with God first, and the rest will fall into place.

I really appreciated the time Chris Flanders, Kelly Davidson, and Traci Wilson took to present this information to us. I feel that everyone who ever considers mission work should take the time to learn these fundamental topics so they can prepare for the cultural differences and realize what it is we are doing. After looking back, I'm afraid I made several mistakes while in Kenya last summer because it was never taught to me. I am very thankful to have had this opportunity to learn these fundamentals.

It seems like ACU keeps coming up in different ways, like God keeps putting that option in front of me. I have decided that if I do get a bachelor's degree, I want to get it from ACU. I feel like the foundation in Bible that I would recieve there is a necessity if I desire to be a servant and share the good news with people. We will see what God's plan has in store for me.

Work

So today had to be the worst start to a day ever! I woke up late and had to rush to work. Well despite my efforts, the traffic signals kept me from getting to work on time (No, Mom and Dad, I didn't speed). I was only three minutes late, but one minute past the clock in time is late. So I clock in at 8:48 as opposed to 8:45 and get my passenger count sheet from Dispatch. So I run out to the bus, which happens to be the furthest away on the lot, and get it cranked up. It is now 8:50 and I still have to drive off campus for my first stop at 8:59. I immediately pull out of the lot, but someone in management had the bright idea to have all of the buses from every route leave at the same time. So I didn't get out of the lot until 9:00 because of the back up to get out of the gate. So I finally arrive at my first stop 6 minutes late. Well, another route 36 bus is right in front of me, and I tell him to go ahead and I'll get the next few stops. Well, he says that he's on schedule, and that I should go around him to get back on my schedule, so I do. Well I'm so anxious to get caught back up on schedule that when I do get back on schedule, I accidentally leave early from the main campus stop. Once again I get behind another route 36 bus. Thinking that I'm on schedule, I tell her to go out of service and get back on schedule. She then replies that she is on schedule, that I'm early. So I make a fool out of myself all morning. We'll see how the rest of the day goes!

SNOWMAN

Micah, Tori, Christina, and I went to Starbucks tonight for coffee to warm us up from the freezing weather. We walked Christina back to her apartment and while we were dropping Tori off at her dorm, we saw a huge snowman so we stopped to take pictures.

SNOW!!!!

It's snowing in College Station today! It just started snowing at about 1pm and it's supposed to keep snowing until 3am tomorrow morning. I just got a call from Blinn College; my Fire and Arson Investigation class at 6pm got cancelled. I'm kind of hoping that work will be cancelled tomorrow morning.

Here's a video of the snow

On the way back from Abilene, Micah, Tori, and I stopped at a barn on Highway 6. Here are some pictures of the "Aggie Barn"

Blogging

I just added blogger to my phone. Maybe that will help me post more often, plus it really easy to add pictures.

Today was uneventful. I drove the bus from 7 to 11, slept in my car in the transit parking lot from 11 to 1, slept again at my house from 1 to 5 because I didn't really get comfortable in my car, and now I'm about to go to class until 9. All of this driving over the weekend going to and from Abilene and driving for work wore me out! At least I have Freshman Devo tonight after class to look forward to.


- Paul

Trip to Abilene

I went to Abilene this weekend and got in trouble (again) for not posting on my blog, so I figure I had better start posting. This weekend was a lot of fun. I got to see David, Kristen, and Ava, as well as some friends. Ava is getting really big! I'm beginning to wish I had gone to ACU so I could be around all the time and not miss out on anything exciting like Ava mocking her Daddy making fart sounds! haha. I also got to go to Sing Song with Micah on Saturday night. It was really good! That made me want to go to ACU even more.

I have reached a dilemma. If you know me, you know that I like to make plans well in advance so I have enough time to change my mind at the last minute. I know I made the right decision by going to Blinn and getting all of my firefighter/paramedic certifications, but I don't know what to do after I finish my associate's degree. I'll be done with the degree in Fall 2010, and want to go to paramedic school in Spring 2011. Here's the problem: I need a bachelor's degree to move up in the ranks in the fire department. I've been thinking about going to ACU in Fall 2011 to do a degree in either Communications or Social Work. I would like to use a career in the fire service to ultimately glorify God, and I believe that going to ACU and obtaining the education to help people find the resources they need would be very benificial. Another option is getting hired on with a fire department and getting a Fire and Emergency Management degree online while I work. The good thing about this option is that my course work from Blinn would supplement the degree plan for the bachelor's degree. I also realize that I do not need to have a degree from ACU to be a servant in God's kingdom. We will see where God takes me.

Getting Ready!

I've been running and working out lately so I can get in shape for the fire recruit academy next fall. A show about Orange County Fire Recruits on the Fox Reality Channel shows how physically demanding a recruit academy is. I realized I better start now because on the show, there was a guy that had been working out to prepare for the recruit academy for six years. He was still completely drained after PTs. So far this week I've run 6 miles, walked 3 miles, and done workouts for upper body.

I bought my first axe today! I came home to find the landlord cutting down two large pine trees that were in front of the house in College Station. Once Tyler got home, he mentioned that we should cut some of it up to use for fire wood, but none of us had an axe. Of course, being a fireman and all, I decided that I should be the one to have an axe so we went to Home Depot to buy an axe. I looked at about six different types of axes and decided that the one for me was the one with an awesome name... "The Maul." It is an axe on one end and a sledge hammer on the other end. I figured I can get two things for the price of one... and it's just cool. So tonight, everyone at the Mulebarn has been chopping wood all night. We have a good amount of wood cut so we'll be good for all winter. We also went out to the back part of our three acres and made a firepit for us to burn it in.

I'm headed home this weekend. I'll be at Dallas Fire Station #7 on Friday, once I get back, until 7:00am Saturday morning. After that I will head up to the Dallas Fire Training Center to practice for the Candidate Physical Ability Test (CPAT) and teach the explorers about patient assessment and the engine company. After I'm done with firefighting stuff, I'm gonna go to Kaufman to see Granny. Then the rest of the weekend is free.

It's been a while

Sorry, I haven't posted anything on my blog for such a long time. I've been busy with school, AFC, and family so it is hard to find time to blog.

First I have to mention the birth of my new niece, Ava Kate. She's actually two weeks and a day old today. She is precious and I'm really glad I got to be in Abilene when she was born.

Unfortunately, with the new life being brought into this world, another one left. Granddaddy (my dad's dad) passed away last tuesday morning. Granddaddy was a great man who truly had an impact on his family, church, and community. I hope that I learn to live a servant life like Granddaddy did.

Weekend Trip

I got back from the mission trip to Saginaw on Sunday. We had a lot of fun on the trip painting houses and cleaning out garages...IN THE RAIN! I had a lot of fun doing the Aggie skits for the church Saturday night and getting to preach Sunday morning. It was a real blessing to get to know the people that came on the mission trip with me, working with the Thai church, and working in the community to show them God's love. God has truely used the mission trip to Kenya and AFC to develop our relationship.

I thought I would put this on here too cause it was cool. I took this picture the other night when a storm was passing by.

I NEED A JOB!

On top of having to go to Chemistry Class tonight (not my favorite class), I found out I didn't get the job with A&M EMS. I'm a little frustrated because it puts a dent in my plans (I can't get paid to go to A&M football games). I am, however, looking into another ambulance service that would pay more and offer benefits. The name of the EMS Service is Legacy EMS, which offers 911 ambulance service in San Jacinto County and transport ambulances in Brazos County. I didn't really want to do transport only EMS but I think it will be a good learning experience for me. Someone with Careflight, while I was doing my EMT clinicals, told me that 911 service EMS is where all the exciting action is, but if you really want to learn stuff, to stick with transports and working with hospitals. I also feel better about an interview for an EMT job now that I've experienced one. I wasn't sure what to expect when I did my interview for A&M EMS, but now I feel better prepared. Please pray for me as I try to find a job down here. I know that God's plans will lead me in the right direction.

I got a call from Cameron today asking me to be the Co-Leader in the weekend trip that he is leading. I'm very excited about this! I'm going to have breakfast with Kelly Davidson and all of the leaders and co-leaders for the weekend trips to discuss the plans.

First Week of College Classes

This week has been very exciting for me! I started college, did the freshman devo, had a EMT job interview, and I've had lots of studying!

My first day in college went well. My first class, College Algebra, was at 10:00am. It's extremely easy for me because I took Calculus with Mrs. Lawler in high school. She did a great job preparing her students for college. I honestly think that my college math is easier than high school math. Everyday in Mrs. Lawler's class we had at least 15 problems to do for homework. In my College Algebra class, I finished my 10 problem homework before we even went over anything at all in class.

My next class was at 7:05pm... yes, at night. Mondays and Wednesdays I have English from 7:05pm to 8:20pm. We talked about class for a couple of minutes, then we jumped right in to writing an essay. My idea for the essay was good, but I only had 20 minutes to read an article and write the essay over it, so I didn't get to say what I really wanted to say. Tonight, Wednesday night, we were assigned a research paper about a controversial topic of our choice, and we have to write two argumentative essays, one from each perspective. For my topic I chose to ask the question of whether Americans should concentrate on serving America instead of the serving the needs of other countries. I got this idea from my experiences in Kenya. While we were at Made In The Streets, we would often talk about America's role in getting involved with other country's problems. I think I have a good view of perspectives in order to write this paper, but I still need to do some research on the topic and maybe narrow it down a little bit. (David, I'm accepting input!)

Then I have my only class on Tuesdays and Thursdays; General Chemistry. This is the only class that I'm nervous about not doing well in. I didn't do well in all in high school chemistry and when the professor, Dr. Gostecnik, went around the room asking questions, it seemed like I was the only one that didn't know what the most abundant element on earth is, and that gasoline is a hydrocarbon. I have some reading to do! I think the only thing I'm excited about for chemistry is the lab coat I have to have for labs. haha

My Firefighting Strategy and Tactics class is online, so I take it at my own pace. For those of you who thought I knew everything about firefighting, you're wrong. I got a 36 on my pre-test. Luckily it's not a grade, just an assessment of our knowledge previous to starting the course. However, after reading the first chapter of the textbook, I have made a 100 on my first quiz and a 100 on two discussions about occupancies (Assembly occupancies, Educational occupancies, Health care occupancies, and so on...)

My interview for an EMT job at A&M went well, despite riding my bike as fast as I could across campus to get to the health center in time, and being a little sweaty once I got there. The EMTs at the front desk were out on a call when I came in, so I had a little bit of time to cool down before the training lieutenant came to get me from the back. I fit right in and was able to show the chief and training lieutenant that I have a good personality and wouldn't be that weird guys that they regret hiring because he goes and hides in the corner. During the interview, I was able to call back on my experiences with Dallas Fire Rescue Ambulances and that impressed them. The chief seemed to like me and told me he thought that I'd do fine in the department and told me what to expect for the hiring process. If I get hired on, it will take me until the end of this semester to be out on my own in the field. I have to go through an EVOC (Emergency Vehicle Operations Course), spend so many hours as the third man, and prove to them that I have the skills necessary to work for them. Please pray for me to get this job.

I've also been running two miles every other day to keep off the freshman fifteen. Kelly Davidson thinks that this is a good enough reason to take me to the marathon that AFC does to support...something, I forget what he said. Anyways, if I can keep up the running trend, I MAY be able to do the HALF marathon.

HAHA, I'm starting to remind myself of my brother. I went to buy a PGA Golf Tour polo shirt for when my housemates teach me how to play golf, and now I'm talking about running a marathon. David...you've inspired me!

Aggies For Christ

I just got back from SOAR. For those of you who don't know what that is, SOAR is a retreat that the Aggies for Christ puts together for people to come and get to know each other and further our relationships with fellow Christians and with God. I'm very glad that I went to SOAR because when I went into church last Sunday, I didn't know anyone and kind of felt left out of the loop. After going to SOAR, I know most of the people in AFC and I can see myself becoming really good friends with all of them. I feel like a part of them now.

The devo's on the retreat were absolutely awesome! The thing that I like about AFC is that they are open, real, and honest. They are open about the struggles that college students face and the hit it head on; they don't tip toe around it. They also realize that while we may be a club at A&M, and it may seem like the group is solely for the students, that the true intent of the club is to provide opportunities for students to do God's work in the world. That excites me so much. There are endless opportunities for students to get involved in with AFC.

The worship was also amazing! My favorite thing to do is to worship and praise our God, and we did a lot of that at SOAR. The singing was beautiful; there was no holding back of our love for God. I felt so connected with my brothers and sisters in Christ, but most of all with God.

I'm so excited to be a part of such an awesome group! I can't wait to talk to Kelly later this week about maybe leading a mission trip to Kenya next Summer. I got to watch a video of a guy named Hutt talking about his experiences in the slums of Nairobi and see the pictures that went along with it. I can't tell you how much I miss those kids and Made In The Streets! My heart is with those people in Kenya and I love each and everyone of them. I really hope that everything works out to go again next summer.

We are starting up the Freshman devo at A&M on Mondays at 9:15pm. I'm really excited about this also because it gives me a great opportunity to lead others in worship. There was a Sophomore guy named Austin who was sitting in front of me during a devo at SOAR who turned around after we finished singing and urged me to lead singing at the freshman devos. He came up to me again tonight at the AFC "back to school bash" to ask if I had taken that role. I told him that I did volunteer to lead worship this Monday, but that we have so many great leaders in our class that we would all eventually be leading worship and giving our devotional thoughts at the devos. I really think that our class in AFC is going to do great!

This is the first meal I made living on my own...I think I'm going to make it!

Today I woke up at about 9:30am and went to A&M to fill out an application to be an EMT for A&M EMS. After that I went to Blinn to try to hurry my financial aid along...Ugh they're so slow! After I got all the boring stuff out of the way, Micah, Conner, Jeremy, and A.J. came over to the house and we watched the Office. Then we went to guys' dorm for a while. I came back home and did a load of laundry. Oh, I made my bed this morning too! Mom won't believe I'm doing all of this on my own.

College!!!

I'm finally moved into my house in College Station. I'm so excited about finally studying what I've always wanted to do. Here are some pictures of my room. It looks great...thanks to my parents! They got me all set up this weekend.

I'm starting the blog back up now so stay tuned for my college updates!