my life

I've been blessed to have been so many different people in this life already.

-A human baseball encyclopedia from ages 7-14

• A damn good first basemen from 12-14

-College kid from 18-present
-Fat kid from 11-17

-Fat kid at heart from the day I was born to the present
-I started running nearly every day 2 years ago and have lost nearly 30 lbs.
-I stole and crashed a golf cart at age 5

-I skied down the Olympic Run in Lake Placid, NY at age 12 and made it all the way to the bottom
-I went through about 4 bullies as a kid

• I had a bully who's dad brought out a scale to weigh me because he didn't believe I was the weight I told all my friends I was - later that week I purposefully broke a lamp in their basement
  
• I had another bully who would always make me "the queer" in smear the queer
  
• I eventually "fought" one of my bullies and won
• My youth was every childhood bully movie you've seen
  

-I met Dick Cheney on an elevator when I was 4
-I shook George W. Bush's hand on the campaign trail when I was 10
-I told people I was a Republican as a kid, but knew it just gave me a side to root for come election time (this way of thinking could be applied to just about any person claiming to be devout to one party-whether they admit it or not)
-Christian music fan 11-14
-I have a best friend that I've kept in close contact with for years, even though we're 1600 miles apart most of the time
-I watched Michael Jordan play live
-I made a hook shot into my basketball hoop from hundred feet away but no one was looking
-In Hawaii when 9/11/01 happened
-Movie lover from 14-present
-Movie maker from 14-present
-I spray painted most of my body brown for an Australian party in Utah
-I ran the streets of D.C. late one night to get to a rally in a hotel bar
-I witnessed a near-riot outside of an Obama speech and got it on camera

-I've crashed 2 cars...both, I claim, "were not my fault."
-I was depressed my entire senior year of high school but never really told anyone
-My parents are my best friends
-I went on a cross country roadtrip

• I was driving a car when the engine exploded
• I started a Texas brushfire
• I witnessed a storm on the Colorado border that changed my perception of beauty and sense of God

-I took a photo that was featured on a photography website's homepage
-I read 3 Harry Potter books in 2 weeks time at age 13
-I was escorted by the LAPD through underground police tunnels at 1 am from the scene of a crime on Sunset Blvd. (and managed to get a picture)

-I had three girlfriends through high school and always wondered why they went for me
-I met Bono by accident in Chicago
-I helped out with Hurricane Katrina relief down in New Orleans and Mississippi
-I have a close friend that's Australian...I find ways to slip this into conversation
-I got punched in the face last night in a mosh pit I didn't want to be a part of
-I got arrested for climbing on the roof of a Quiznos with a friend

• They dropped the charges 2 weeks later in court claiming that the cops must have been having a slow night

-I personally met my favorite musician Andrew Bird in Cleveland after a show
-I converted to Mormonism about 4 months ago after distancing myself from religion for about 2-3 years

• I'm still learning how to integrate it into my life
• I am shown examples nearly every day of how much this faith makes sense in our world today
• It's one of the best decisions I've made

There are so many things I failed to mention (like the time I got a tattoo on whim). Looking back, I guess I can be kind of spontaneous most of the time. I'm aware of that, so I never make any life-altering bad decisions. I love that about myself. It makes life interesting.
If there's one thing I've learned in my time thus far on earth, it's to live passionately. No matter the location, the state of mind, the circumstances, live with joy and love in the hand you've been dealt. More importantly, know that joy and love are of God. Never grow disenchanted with life.

And don't be afraid of the changes...revel in them.

I can't wait to continue to add to this list, living vicariously through my own heart.