Tomorrow I will watch the love of my life walk down the aisle.  I could not be more excited.  Tomorrow, I start my life.  Tomorrow, everything will change.  Tomorrow people from all over the country will gather into our church, just to watch her and I exchange vows, kiss, and eat cake.

There is one thing that is on my mind.  Tomorrow, there will be some people very important to me who will not be there.  Tomorrow, I will miss my mother, Helen.  My sister, Adrienne. My best friend, Matthew. Andrea’s Grandfather, Roland. More people, (I have a long list, you don’t want me to go on.)

The people mentioned above all had their quirks.  The people above all changed my life.  I never really got a chance to tell the people above how much I loved them.  Somehow, I know they know.  I loved them a lot. Nontheless, tomorrow will be a celebration of all things.  Tomorrow will be the happiest day of my life.  Have I mentioned lately that I am marrying the most beautifulist girl in the whole wide universe?

Because I am.

So, last night on the way home from church, we passed by the bar in which I used to work.  I am happy to say that this bar is now out of business.

For those of you who don’t know.  That bar was called the Blue Moose Tavern.  I literally lived at that bar for three and a half months.  That bar is where I did most of my doping, and a good bit of my drinking.  That bar was filled with deceit, hate, lies, backstabbing, and everything that was killing me.

Don’t get me wrong.  I am not blaming that place for my problems.  I am fully aware that those were my decisions.  But that bar did not help.  That bar did not make it easy. that bar had my soul for a very very long time, and most of the memories of that bar are very painful.

Now, don’t get me wrong.  That bar holds one very special memory.  That is the first time I ever laid eyes on the most beautiful girl in the world.  The angel in the room full of evil.  The shining light through the cloud of smoke.  The most talented barista in all the world. That is the first place I ever saw Andrea, (before she saw me, I’m pretty sure)  That is the place I spoke my first words to her, which were, “Hey baby, why don’t I take you outside and show you how a real man kisses.”

No. I’m not kidding.  I was a loser.

Because of that meeting, my life has changed, and I fully believe Jesus has a reason for everything.  The reason Andrea was hurting, and going to places like that for escape, may very well be to be a wounded healer for me.

Looking back, it’s almost hard to believe the person I was back then.  It’s impossible to imagine where I would be today.  I thank God for meeting Andrea, in that little piece of Hell.  I’m glad we both left that place.  God is good indeed!

With that said. Praise God!

Good riddance Blue Moose Tavern!

It happened Saturday.  I was riding my scooter home from Hobby Lobby.  I was in my parking lot, and turned on to my strip.  I was going slow.  I remember specifically thinking, “Wow, I’m actually going slow.”

That’s when it happened.  Out of no where.  A girl was there.  She couldn’t be older than 5.  She walks out from behind a car, and yells, “SLOW DOWN PUNK!!” Then, part 2 happened.  She quickly raised her right hand, and to my surprise, her middle finger.

I was shocked.  I didn’t know what to do.  (A few years ago, I may have laughed a little.)  I came to an almost complete stop, with it in my right mind to go talk to her parents.  Then I realized.  This girl is around 5 years old.  She didn’t just… learn it.  Someone had to teach her.

It made me sad.  I realize that some one taught her to say that.  A: I wasn’t going fast. B: she flipped me off.  She pretty much said “F-U” with her hands.  ugh.

I write this because I’m in shock.  Does it just take learning something for a child to do it?  When will she realize it’s not polite, or it means something that can be hurtful?  Who taught her that?  Would her parents punish her?  As a parent, how do you confront that issue?

I don’t know.. It’s sad to me.

So, most of you know, I’m not too terribly ‘skilled’ at code.  Some would say I’m subpar.

What I am good at is being hard headed, and not liking to lose.  When I am faced with losing, my brain stretches to unimaginable measures.  Tonight, that happened, and I was able to help a fellow blogger out with his site.

Most of you probably don’t know him, he’s just a small time blogger named Carlos Whitaker.

So, his comments were down for a while.  3 or 4 hours I think.  I helped, I solved the problem.  Once I solved the problem, I commented on his blog, and… the rest is in screenshot history.

If you can’t read that, I say, “Who’s your daddy?” and Los himself says, “Andy is.”

I’m not one to brag, but, I have fathered a man who is older than me, and far superior, (at least to technorati)

That’s pretty flippin sweet.  If this is your first time here, click around, leave comments, read away. There is some good stuff here somewhere.  If you find it, let me know!

I want to say, I love the blog community.  There are HUGE things happening in my life right now. (Mainly, I’m getting married in 3 days! but also, Andrea and I have joined a team of AMAZING bloggers over at http://www.caffeinatedfaith.com and we are doing huge things there.  More to come soon, including ways to help out charities of YOUR CHOICE.  (you’ll get something in return.)

This is truely a body of Christ, and that is what I strive to be.  The internet can be viewed as breeding grounds for a lot of negative things, and it makes my heart pump to be part of something that isn’t negative, and is actually a positive influence on peoples lives.

Can I get an AMEN?  How do you use the internet to form community?

It’s Tuesday again.  Which is exciting to me.  If this is your first time here, let me give you the rundown.  On each day of the week Monday – Friday, me, and a group of bloggers take a day to feature a child who has been waiting six months or longer for sponsorship.  These are the bloggers:

• Toby Keathley – Monday
• ME!!– Tuesday
• caffeinatedfaith – Wednesday
• shawnw.org – Thursday
• Andrea | Shalom  Existence – Friday

If you’re curious or have any more questions head over to the compassion part on my blog, and see what this blog has done.

Today, I chose Trisia. Her full name is Trisia Pretty Dameria Boru Purba.  That’s a sassy name.  Try to say it out loud.  Now you know why I chose her.  Her picture is filled with just as much sas, and it is cute. Let’s get down to it.

I won’t go into the whole “guilt” thing.  But I will say.  Pray about it.  Has God been calling you for some time now?  Do you feel like something needs to be done, or like you need to do something?  Maybe this is it.  Say a prayer, and let God guide you. To sponsor Trisia, click here, or on the image at any time.

Name:       Trisia Pretty Dameria Boru Purba (IO5680050)
Birthday:    April 28, 2003    Age: 5
Gender:     Female
Region:     Asia
Country:    Indonesia
Program:    Bethsaida Student Center

Personal and Family Information:
In her home, Trisia helps by running errands. She lives with her father and her mother. Her father is employed and her mother is employed. There are 4 children in the family.

Playing with dolls is Trisia’s favorite activity. In primary school her performance is average and she also regularly attends church activities.

Please remember Trisia in your prayers. Your love and support