Life Update

This is a "State of Kyle" address if you will.
No real epiphanies.
No witty phrases.
No crafted literary devices.
Simply put. My Life:

I am working part time as a Youth Minister.
I am looking for a second job.
I am looking for a place to live.
I am looking for a reliable car.
And I am looking for good friends.
I do have an awesome girlfriend

Boom. My LIfe.
Simply Complex.
If you have a job to offer me,
A place for me to live,
A car for me to drive,
Or want to hang out and don't mind paying
Let me know.

On a side note, i have had extra time to read.
So maybe a more thought provoking post will appear in my blog.

The End of Salt Lake City

The following is our vacation's end.
AKA, days 6 and 7.

1-3
Our vacation was approaching its end,
But a day of adventure created a boundary
As large as a mountain,
Like a drawn curtain shielding us from the harsh morning light of our previous life.
Facing a day in the car,
Hours of driving,
And the return to reality,
We spent our final day free of confines,
Careening down a mountain,
Feet firmly fixed on a waxed bored,
Hearts and mind free from
whatever awaited our return in Joplin,
Focused on nothing but the reality of the moment.
Needing a break from absolute freedom,
Lunch made me wish we had never returned to the lodge.
My sandwich was awful. It tasted like a giant green olive.
Which i hate.
That sandwich was like the sun berating the stiffened ground
As it longed to be quenched by a torrential downpour during monsoon season.
However, i refused to allow that sandwich to chain me to the lodge.
As our lift passes expired, so did my energy.
My body longed for a rest.
Turns out being unchained, free, wild if you will,
Destroys your body.
Maybe that's why hardly anyone is.
Nonetheless, i needed to be refueled.
So we went to Dakota's to freshen up,
And feed on lasagna like cows in a never-ending prairie.
Coffee was the only proper ending to this day,
And subsequently our vacation.
So, we went to the local Sunset Coffee,
Where we listened to Dakota's IPod
And continued our tradition of Bananagrams.
Although caffeine gave us a boost,
It was clear that we were losing steam as our coffee warmed.
Returning to Dakota's House,
I didn't want to sleep.
Sleep represented the end of vacation,
The return to reality,
The end of an era,
The conclusion to our excursion.
Still, exhaustion persevered.
Sleep.

1-4
We woke up and got on the road,
Grabbing iced coffee as we had before,
However, it tasted more bitter this time.
I'm not sure if it was the coffee, or our departure
That left this taste in my mouth.
Wyoming ushered us with wind, but no snow this time.
Stopping at Dakota's sister's house was necessary to delay reaching our destination.
Wishing to extend our time away as much as possible.
Our driving continued until we reached Jordan's House in Nebraska.
This seemed like the longest day ever.
Not because of the drive, or the company, or the weather.
Instead, it was the news.
As we drove, we received word that our good friend had encountered tragedy.
A friend we had been praying for throughout our trip.
A friend we loved so much.
Emotions overcame the four of us as we wept
and prayed over the next 40 miles.
This surreal moment will stick with me forever.
Never had i prayed so hard. Never had i invested so much emotion.
Never had i connected with a group in community,
As i had in that car.
Going to church, living in a dorm, hanging with my friends,
Nothing even approached what i experienced as we traveled.
Every curve of the road, every mile post, every minute that passed,
Seemed fake. Unreal.
At that point, the only thing that was real were the four people in our car.
The road was a welcomed sight.
A seeming escape from the hurt of the world.
Reality was a harsh climate. And the road provided an oasis.
Still we had to continue our return to "normal life."
But how could we?
This trip changed me.
And returning to life seemed to be a regression.

1-5
Nevertheless, we arrived back to Joplin on day 8,
Only to hang out that night as we had the previous seven,
By watching a movie and dosing to sleep.

Salt Lake City Day 4 and 5

Sorry for the delay on the chronicles of my Salt Lake Journey.
The following is the account of Day 4 & 5. Enjoy.

1-1
The New Year dawned as we slept through its first morning.
Arising to fresh coffee and great friends conversing around a room
Provided the first great moment of 2011.
Dakota's Mom, and ours for the trip,
Was gracious enough to fix us a "Christmas Breakfast."
Her cooking filled our stomachs
But her hospitality filled our hearts.
Satisfied from the enormity of eating,
All that was left was to watch a movie: Grown Ups. or was it Mall Cop?
Well, I don't remember.
"Grown-Ups" would be a perfect description of who we were:
Escaping life to mourn a death.
A time was dying, but this trip memorialized it.
"Mall-Cop" characterized the youthful passion
Retained as we fought the evil of the world.
Ok, maybe not.
But as the movie concluded, so did our morning.
Skipping lunch, we prepared to depart for the mountain.
Sonja and I decided to skip the slopes and lounge in the Lodge.
A decision i thought i would regret,
But thoroughly enjoyed.
And we had the largest serving of nachos ever created by man.
It must have been an entire bag of everything.
Dakota and Jordan enjoyed adventure time
And joined us for a break from the blistering cold.
We descended the chilly mountain face
To a bowl of thawing chili.
Concluding the night, we met two great friends for drinks at the Bayou.
A place that seemed to have little Cajun flare
But made up for it by housing our friends for a few hours.
I always enjoy hanging out with Jared and Julie Marling.
And i wish we could hang out more.
Nonetheless, this was a great night.
And a great conclusion to 1-1-11.

1-2
On Day 5 of our vacation
We still had not experienced a morning in 2011.
Instead, we rested and ate breakfast at In and Out Burger.
This day was a very different experience
Than any other on our trip.
Why? Because everything is closed on Sundays.
Corporate chains, private businesses, and the like
Lock their doors and rest.
The antonym of New York City.
But we managed to find a trendy coffeehouse entitled:
The Green House Effect.

And it didn't follow the culture.
It was open on Sunday
And made of recycled material.
After coffee, we got coffee.
You may be wondering:
If the whole city closes, why are coffee shops open?
Mormons don't drink caffeine. Soooo, yeah.
After coffee #2, we went to church.
Missio Dei (Mission of God),
A community oriented, informal, young
Church plant refueled my passion for the church,
A theme that unfortunately repeated itself.
More on that later.
Our day of rest (although different than the Mormon concept)
Gave way to a night spent at the Kildoo's
Eating enchiladas and playing games.
An experience that has become a routine at Afton.
A nice taste of the familiar to compliment the foreign
And prepare me for another day of doing.

Salt Lake City Day 3

Here is the entry for our 3rd day of vacation, but first full day in SLC.

It was a good one...

12-31

I had only snowboarded once before.

Eldora, Colorado.

Not exactly known for their mountainous ski resorts.

So to say the least, I was “stoked” about snowboarding at a legit park.

Because of the recent snow, we parked at the bottom

And rode to the top

In what seemed to be a NYC subway during rush hour

Instead of an SLC Bus at nine.

However, we made it to the slopes, snow suited up,

Prepared to take on the powder.

And so we did.

Well, Kind of.

Sonja had never spent time on the slopes,

And her learning curve was as steep as the mountain she was ascending.

Two hours later, we made it through our first run.

Tired and Frustrated, Sonja was ready for a break.

Jordan, Dakota, and I went on one last run before lunchtime

After which we met up in the lodge for a delicious deli sandwich.

A short rest resulted in the rest of the day on the Chickadee Lift

A.K.A. The Bunny Slope.

Sonja continued to learn and be frustrated.

Dakota, Jordan, and I worked on some useful skills

A successful day of Snowboarding completed,

My body’s energy completely depleted,

My frozen feet thawed,

It was time for New Year’s Eve.

New Year’s Eve is the definition of cliché.

With large expectations for both the night and the upcoming year

Most wake up in the New Year disappointed and hung-over,

With the previous night absent from memory.

However, 2010’s last day was one to remember.

Spent with old friends, Julie and Jared Marling,

Lasting memories were formed as artistically as our Sushi.

Sushi typically leaves you wanting more:

Light and un-filling.

Following the theme,

The trendy Ichiban Sushi produced an experience

That I longed for more of

Because it was so enjoyable.

Our night continued to Julie and Jared’s house,

Where we toasted the New Year with Dick Clark.

Black Eyed Peas were not consumed.

Resolutions were not discussed.

Simply put, the night led into the New Year

As previews lead into the featured presentation.

Although the upcoming year may be a different genre than previous,

It will undoubtedly produce plots similar to ones I’ve already experienced.

Uncertainty about the upcoming show settled in

As the lights faded down on 2010

And the moon ushered in 2011.

Although morning remained cloaked in darkness,

Light was inching toward the horizon,

A representation of one thing: Opportunity awaits in 2011.

Salt Lake City Day 2

The first day of my vacation was eventful. The second day was more fun.
My Vacation Story continues.
Here is the second post...

12-30

Continuing our longer than expected drive,

We left the Day’s Inn for our final destination.

With clearer roads and sunny skies,

Three quiet hours passed quickly, landing us in SLC.

So, naturally once we arrived, we ate.

After the last day of white-knuckled driving,

Noodles and Co. with a good friend was necessary.

Filled to the brim with food and good company,

We rented our Snowboard equipment,

And returned with boards and boots to Dakota’s Home.

We settled into Salt Lake City as the

Excitement for the coming day spilled over into our night.

We played games to celebrate our arrival

And the next day’s activities on the Mountain,

Mario Kart and Bananagrams consumed our time.

I love playing games because I’m typically good at them.

In fact, I tell others that

“I don’t play games I don’t win.”

Our competitive natures collapsed

As the mass of games amounted.

The pace of activity slowed as our tired brains

Strained to create words with our inconvenient tiles.

Unwinding from the drive and subsequent day

It felt great to be at our vacation,

Not in route to our vacation.

Played out from the drive and games,

We ended the day with a movie.

Despicable Me was played, but not watched

As tired bodies slumped on the couch and slipped into sleep

Bringing a much needed restful end to the day

And concluding a good start to a great vacation.

Salt Lake City

I'm back from my Salt Lake City Vacation and had a great time.
So, to commiserate my joyous escape from reality,
I will tell the story through a blog series this week.
Here is the first post in that story...

12-29-10

Phase 1: Missouri

The first leg of our journey began bright and early.

Before the rooster crowed, we were in transit,

With iced-coffees in hand, three of us set off,

Prepared for the never-ending path of pavement that lied ahead.

Tired eyes overpowered my back seat position

As Dakota entertained Sonja through a familiar drive

Past Kansas City and into Mark Twain Country.

Sonja’s portion of driving ate up the morning,

But our hunger for journey was not satisfied.

My abbreviated nap came to a halt with Dakota’s Dodge Charger

As we refueled both “Zoe” and ourselves

In preparation of Phase 2 of our journey: Nebraska.

Phase 2: Nebraska

Now my turn to drive, it was my responsibility to navigate into Nebraska,

A task I was less than excited about.

When this trip began, Nebraska was my least favorite state.

(That I had spent time in).

Why?

As an accomplished college student and camp team member,

I spent one bug-filled, rainy week in Nebraska with a hundred Jr. Highers,

Only to drive across the entire God-forsaken state without cell-phone reception.

Flat, boring, treeless, windy. Nebraska.

But our car was less than capacity and we had more company to add: Jordan.

Her farm town was a welcomed sight after enduring the first 8 hours of our drive.

After a short break, and manipulating the luggage,

We hit the road again with Jordan at the wheel.

The addition of another driver and personality created

A fresh environment from the used stale air

From which conversation and laughter flowed.

With half of our distance expired, more cargo, an approaching state, and hours to go,

A new experience inched closer with every mile Jordan drove.

Phase 3: Wyoming

Jordan wrapped up her post-Christmas drive after entering Wyoming.

After a brief stop for dinner at the second-tier burrito shack Qdoba,

Endurance developed into the lasting theme of our night.

Wyoming is worse than Nebraska.

I had always heard how awful Wyoming was, but assumed it was hyperbole.

Then I encountered Wyoming first-hand.

And it lived up to the hype of awfulness.

Black ice camouflaged the road.

Wind gusts overturned Semi’s.

Snow performed its magic act, making the road disappear

As it blew from embankment to embankment.

Flashing lights illuminating the highway warned us weary travelers of the danger

With which we were already familiarized.

Realizing the inherent danger posed by the road,

Our search for a hotel began just past Rawlins, Wyoming.

With every room booked, including the “Sagebrush Motel” in Ramsutter,

We had no choice but to push through the accumulation,

Driving over 100 miles and 3 hours to the town of Rock Springs,

Where our night was spent at the Days Inn.

Needless to say, with lofty goals left unaccomplished,

We were disappointed to spend the night in Wyoming rather than Salt Lake City.

However, we were more than thrilled to be out of the inclement weather

And safely indoors, resting for the rest of our journey in the morning.