Day 162

this morning, as far behind as it now seems, started unsurely. we checked out of the best western before eleven a.m.
that stay in itself was a massive blessing made possible by a friend's parents' frequent flyer miles.

adam and i soon realized halfway through the parking lot that we were not going to get far with all our luggage. we spotted a stray shopping cart across the way (it was the only one that didn't require a deposit to unlock) and like the two bums that we really hadn't tried to become, we loaded our luggage into this cart and headed to church.

that's right. church. during earlier stays in vancouver with kirk from camp, i met his dad kent anderson, a professor at trinity western, and he'd told me that one of his former students was now the pastor of fernie fellowship baptist church. he also said that i could drop his name if it meant establishing connection. we were now headed to this church, pushing the cart and pulling rolling bags across the highway.

the pastor was out of town, unfortunately, but i immediately liked the vibe and 'being' of this church. unlike portland's imago dei, which was cool and inspiring in an equally spiritual and trendy way, this atmosphere didn't hold any pretenses of guest vs stranger cool point deficiencies and seeing that we were bringing all our belongings to church we were kindly greeted, accepted, and allowed to put our stuff with the coats. young guys led the music for the service and we ended up sitting in the crowd of younger people in the front right. the sermon by a guest speaker was solid and i knew i'd found a place i loved when one of the introduction men, probably one of the pastors, told stories about his recent hitchhiking adventures to different churches and places and shared the amazing ways that God had been hooking him up through relationships of his past. he hitches to meet people and pays them for gas instead of driving by himself. sweet.

the church needed a part time janitor. i talked to the lady who'd made the announcement after the service and ended up getting the job. this comes at a huge time because i still need to find some work.

we met a bunch of the people sitting around us and became familiarized and accepted. among these people was jeremy, who'd played guitar on stage for worship, and he invited us to stay at his house until we moved into ours. this is huge. after leaving the hotel earlier with no real place to stay, we were homeless no more. from there everything fell together. i talked to the guy who'd led worship and he said they needed someone to play piano. i'm going to practice with them on wednesday.

some of the other guys at this house are amazing musicians. jeremy, who plays mandolin and fiddle as well as guitar, sat around with me and another stellar guitarist ian and we played blues and jammed bluegrass for part of the afternoon and evening. we really bonded and we reckon we'll start pulling gigs soon in town. a group totaling eleven met up in jeremy's driveway and we walked through the neighborhood to the park and played eighteen holes of frisbee golf.


large gold leaves were thick on the ground and crisp air flowed down from the huge mountains that surround every horizon of this town. even from inside the church the peaks reached and split the skyline. as we rode longboards to the supermarket to create some sort of cheap menu to cook for dinner i noticed that the air keeps getting noticeably cooler. dusk is sudden and the cold dark is deep once the sun disappears behind the towering peaks.

i read a book once, through painted deserts, and experienced a mix of inspiration and jealously at the exciting path that unfolded for don miller. i wanted that. as i turned pages and fed imagination and perspective, i knew that i couldn't settle for the average life, but i had no way of positively pursuing any of this. i don't have any control.

still, day by day, plans and people and blessings and opportunities are being presented and humbly received and i'm starting to see that this story isn't like what i'd thought i'd read about before.

this story is real, it's happening this moment. life is now. be.

and the best part is that i fully believe that if any of it should not never have happened, it already wouldn't have.

Day 111: clutch

so..

i had some time off after starwood dv and before dinner. i happened to be playing guitar with a friend on the back deck of the lodge when i remembered that my little check had been readied for pickup after lunch. i went over and got it only to find that the van that took all the 'foreigners' to the local bank had left at 3:15. i had still been in my office at that time with the campers and was freaked to see that it was now 4:30 and the bank, a twenty minute drive, was closing for the weekend at 5 p.m. i'm leaving camp on sunday afternoon.

i ran across the field to the challenge course, tracked down dave, borrowed his car, and hauled out of the camp parking lot at 4:40 p.m. he'd given me vague and rushed directions- the bank was across the street from a starbucks in a strip mall, and i said thanks and ran. typical is it may be, the only thing stopping me from speeding in this country was the semi truck that had just left camp a few moments before me after making its weekly food delivery. narrow woodland mountain roads curved ahead just sharp enough for me to fully understand that i, in this weary and sputtering tercel, was not going to get the benefit of a doubt in any sort of close-call attempt to pass.

i cleared the truck, eventually, and soon found a lagging impala. grey heads peeked over the dashboard and red brake lights appeared at every curve and hill. i now had 12 minutes to get somewhere that i was relying on guts, vague memory, and last second directions for guidance.

it should be noted that a john fogerty cd happened to be playing as i started the car and also happened to be on the song 'looks like a loooong, longshot baby.' i laughed in this irony of the situation, rolled down the widow the rest of the way, hit the gas, glanced at the clock, and started playing harmonica as the song blasted from the single working car speaker.

i get to the main intersection and glance left and right. i decide left and pull into the turn lane. as i do this, i decide to ask the man in the grey pickup waiting next to me about the location of a bank that i really didn't know the name about. sometimes in these situations, you just gotta spit out the sounds of the name that you think it might be. that's what i did, he clarified my babble, and he said that i could follow him there if i got behind him in the forward moving lane again. i had no choice but to make my left turn however. i cut back eventually and found the pickup with two minutes now left until closing time. i hoped the bank was close from here.

as i look up from the clock, i see a bank on the right that pricked some sense of familiarity. the back of the check had some logo stamped on it and this logo matched the bank, so i made a quick decision and turned in to the lot. sorry truck driver, you probably thought you'd lost me. i ran in and as i waited in line, i noticed that the addresses on the check and the front window matched. key and security door sounds began behind me.

they locked the front door and i stood in line, finding that my eyes were busy assisting and planning the routes of the people ahead of me as each desk began to become available.

at 5:05 p.m., the cash was in hand. i walked out and they thanked me for their business as they pulled the final sliding gate closed.

i repeated the same 'track 12 song on the way back. the warm evening breeze and a fresh perspective of the mountains and the satisfaction of risktaking and adventure and success all settled in together nicely.

tomorrow's the last full day. i leave sunday. next stop, seattle.

Day 33

i woke up early today atop the climbing tower and had a shower before making it to the first breakfast i'd made it to in a few weeks.

some of my macbook pro's problems were solved after an afternoon in isaac's office. he's a good guy with a bushy beard and a massive interest and knowledge in macs and computers in general. not only was final cut pro studio reinstalled in completion, but quicksilver and a clutch, new picture-managing software was added. it was a good time as well.

tonight there was a bonfire at the beach for the staff. after marshmallows had been roasted and songs and testimonies had been released amidst the gentle lapping of waves, the three of us jammed for a couple hours to a fading fire and faithful few. working on recent songs and playing new things in the fire-lit shore was the most chill thing. seriously. no worries. this was part of the point of the initial bonfire, we were all told, because once the summer camp starts there will be little to no free time left for the staff, let alone the entire group.

the phosphorescence actually does sparkle in darkness when you use a stick to stir the water.

we visited the fridge after getting back from jamming on the shores and found the cook had left two bowls, one of chili and the other of barbeque beef, with 'joe and friends' written across the saran rap. between software help and extra food, things have been coming together really well even aside from the big picture of camp being assembled and prepared for this weekend's massive open-house of at least 72o people. weeklong camps start soon after.

its after midnight and my gear is still up at the top of the climbing tower from last night, so that's where i'm going right now. i don't think the hammock worked out too well for dave last night, so i'll be alone up there tonight. goodnight.