I'm no fool, I play it cool.

I love Aubrey Elliott.
I love Chick-Fil-A.

The two together are an unstoppable force, and when combined, may very well be a weapon of mass destruction. Ouachita has a Chick-Fil-A on campus, which Aubrey treats me to periodically. She called today, offering to buy my dinner at Chick-Fil-A as long as I could get there soon, and not make her late for her show tonight. FREE CHICKEN? I'M THERE.

I RUN out of my dorm room, drive over there, and park in visitor parking, the opposite side of where Chick-Fil-A is on their campus. I RUN through across the sidewalks and through the grass as fast...

it rained this morning.

...as I can. The grass is slick, so I'm no fool, I play it cool. "nice and easy", I tell myself, "not too fast, don't slip". I'm making good time, by the way. I get out in the middle of a pretty big section of grass, when all the sudden this grass gets WAY less solid, and WAY more swampish. Uh-Oh. Well, gotta keep running, stopping won't get me out of this mess any faster. I check my shoes (my favorite shoes) in the light when I get there. Disproving myself, "wow, the damage isn't too bad, I guess I made it!"

A similar scenario (photo by Lee Vickers)

People over here at OBU can sense when one of us Reddies steps on campus. I know it. The whole time we were in Chick-Fil-A, everybody was looking at me weird. It was like I had "REDDIE SPIRIT" stamped on my back. I tried not to let it bother me "no big deal", I tell myself "now quit talking to yourself" I tell myself.

On the way out, Aubrey and I bump into a friend, who nicely comments on my shirt. I'm feeling PRETTY good right about now. Everybody likes my shirt, I just got to spend some one-on-one time with Aubrey, and free chicken.

We go to walk out. We get to the door. I turn to leave. Man, that chicken was good. cue Aubrey: "what's all over your back?"

That muddy grass did not treat me good. When I ran through it, I checked my shoes, but I managed to NOT check the entire backside of my body. I had sprayed myself up and down with MUD from my high-velocity running. THAT'S what people had been looking at, not my Henderson Reddie Spirit (also written all over my back).

I won't be doing any high-velocity running through potentially-muddy scenarios for at least another week. This taught me a lesson though. The shirt comment was making me feel pretty proud of myself (for what, my mom picking out a cool shirt?). I guess being a little proud is fine, but being humble is even better. It took about 30secs of pride for my humility to be delivered. It was a nice 30secs, I felt pretty good, but this humility thing makes for way funnier stories.

God answers prayers, and I think praying to be humbled gives him a chance to show off that sense of humor.
I LOVE IT.

James 4:6
"God opposes the proud
but gives grace to the humble."

Smart or Stoopid

Apparently, I'm smart.  Just barely, but I am smarter than the average bear. You never can trust these things though, especially if it's handing out verdicts like that to guys like me.

A very good friend of mine sent me the link to this goofy website.  I was skeptical at first, usually this stuff is garbage, but I trust my friend.

It's a test, a general knowledge trivia kind of deal.  It took me about 2mins to complete, and it was actually quite a bit of fun.  More importantly, it wasn't covered in pop-ups, and it didn't do anything weird, it was just a fun little website, that didn't ask for my email address or anything.

Here's the link

If you've got 2mins, take the test, and then post your score on here, under the comments.  (directly under this post, click COMMENTS)

It was fun.  I wouldn't devote a whole blog entry to it if I didn't want you to go do it!

Living with Honor Students

I live in the honors dorm here at Henderson State. (wait, is this Cameron Magee's blog?) Honors students have got to be the best people to live with ever. They just study all the time.

However, I discovered the REAL main reason that living with honor students is the best thing ever.

I ran down to the trash chute to toss a week's load in, and found this note from the Hall Director taped up. One of my fellow dorm dwellers had added their personal touch.

iPhone Owner

It's official, I am now a happy iPhone owner.

Me and Apple's iPhone go WAY BACK...

June 29, 2007
My friends Tyler and Jake meet me at the AT&T store at 3am, to get in line for the 6pm launch of the Original iPhone. We arrive, the first ones there, crowning us the coveted title of "I had it before everybody got it". At 8am, I received a phone call from my dad, telling me to get out of the iPhone line. He wouldn't give an answer, he just told me to step out. So, I gave up my "number one" spot in line.

December 25, 2007
Christmas Day. After waiting six whole months (of drooling on Tyler's phone) I think this is the day. Surely, he told me to get out of line, because he had an iPhone under the tree for me. Nope. I make the statement that I'm going to buy one, and he baits me, "better wait and see for your birthday in March".

March 15, 2008
My eighteenth birthday. This is the day. After waiting 6+3 months, I begin unwrapping the small boxes first. Nope. I give up.

July 11, 2008
the iPhone 3G (current model) hits the streets. Both my bosses, Dave and Chad, are in line, and get one on release day (sound familiar?). Me? Nope. "That does it, I'm going out and buying one myself, this is ridiculous". My father had drug me out an entire year with anticipation and hints of him giving one to me as a gift. He stops me, again. "Better wait and see what Santa leaves under the tree THIS year"

November 30, 2008
My brother and I are home. We go to church, then eat lunch at RibCrib. My dad takes a wrong turn on the way home, and we end up at the AT&T store. We walk in, sit down, and walk out 56mins later with a black iPhone in my hand, and a white one in Caleb's.

I love this phone. Not the status symbol statement that it makes, but the functionality of having the internet in my pocket. In fact, I am trying to keep my iPhone on a modest basis. It drove me NUTS through the last 1.5yrs when people would practically wave them in other's faces. "well, let me check that out on my iPHONE, do you like it, it's an iPHONE?!"

Loving the phone, but also loving keeping it in my pocket, and not being a snob about it. The phone is not perfect, but it is the best phone on the market right now, so I'll take it. People will report of flaws, such as battery life, or camera quality, but it truly is the best phone on the shelves, and I love it.

Thank you, Mom and Dad, for our early Christmas Presents for this year. I may not have anything to open on Christmas morning now, but that's a fair trade for this wonderful early gift.

High School Reunion

Homesick for Bentonville family, most of my high school friends returned to the (479) this weekend. We decided to pry ourselves away from family time for one night together, and it was a blast.

I've only been out out of high school for half a year now, but it was nice to get to see all of my secondary school friends. After high school, with everybody going separate ways, the only form of communication we have is facebook, which we all talk on daily.

Here's a quick Finder, left to right, front row first:

Brady: Harding University, AR
Aubrey: Ouachita Baptist University, AR :)
Alice: University of Tulsa, OK
Cassandra: University of Central Arkansas, AR

Alan: Bentonville High School Senior, AR
Wesley: United States Army, OK
Hunter: Missouri State University, MO
Nick: United States Naval Academy, MD

Alan is one year younger than us, but has always been a part of the gang, so he's in there with us.

We went to Acambaro for dinner, then piled in the DeLuca's Yukon XL to head to Lokomotion. After a quick round of November Mini Golf, and Freezing Go Karts, we headed to McDonalds for some social time, then called it quits right before midnight.

It was a blast. Hard to call it a high school reunion, but that's what it was. We'll be back at Christmas, watch out Bentonville!