mikey arce

The Fringe Network

2009-08-02T03:03:00.003-04:00

I started a blog to talk about some of the work I am doing with Bolivia. I will be traveling around Bolivia for the month of August, so if you are interested, go here:

The Bolivian Circus

in honour of Felix

2009-07-20T20:58:00.002-04:00

If you are wondering what an archaeopteryx is, it's just that bird in the picture.

the things I say sometimes...

2009-06-30T17:50:00.003-04:00

me: that's strange

kirsten: what?

m: there are a bunch of people hugging over there

k: that's a mailbox

m: oh...

might be time to go see the eye doctor.

Eat more, quicker

2009-06-24T13:22:00.003-04:00

New Wearable Feedbags Let Americans Eat More, Move Less

experiments in mystery - part 1

2009-05-02T04:19:00.007-04:00

"Freedom is gone"
-drunk man outside my window that was just arrested

I am learning to appreciate mystery. When I think about mystery I find that I often think of problem solving. There is a problem, you spend some time trying to figure out an answer, and then you figure it out and *bam* you're done. Most movies you watch will resolve all problems within a 2 hour time period. Shows like 24 solve what seems like an infinite number of crises all in one day! My life is very different from that reality.

When I appreciate mystery, not only do I learn to humble myself but I also learn to enjoy things that I will never understand.

Just 5 minutes ago, I was listening to a man outside of my window. He had a bit too much to drink and he was wailing and shouting about the issues in his life, it was like he was reciting Ecclesiastes from memory.

"My life is not worth living!"

"My freedom is gone, and I don't want to live"

"Fuck you cops! I'm not drunk!"

The police showed up and arrested him for being drunk in public.
I was picturing an elderly concerned woman in her house calling the police..

Gertrude: "Hi, yes... there is a drunken man yelling profanities outside and it's not letting me sleep."

Cops: "Ok ma'am, we will be right over to take care of the situation."

Since when is our priority to sleep more important than a man's life?

His name is Mike (I overheard the police asking him for his ID). He is going through a really hard time, and he's not coping well. Maybe he lost his job, maybe he lost a loved one, maybe he has no friends? He's hurting. I realized that in our community, we don't have room for people who are hurting. They don't let us sleep. We put people in jail that we don't like, we medicate people with bad attention spans, and shove our ancestors in "retirement villages" that kill them long before they die.

Mystery draws me into questions. It probes my heart with a piercing knife of discomfort. Should I have just sat and listened to Mike get arrested or should I have gone out and fought for his safety and listened to him? I don't know, but my fear and questions often lead me to just... sitting, and waiting. What has led our culture to be a place where we don't have room for the hurting? We live in a world that calls H1N1 (or porkfluenza) a pandemic because it killed some rich white people like me, but doesn't give a shit about the millions of people with HIV because they are poor and therefore not important.

There is mystery in everything. Jesus is a mystery, and he draws us into asking questions about life, not having answers. I used to think it was about having all the right answers and knowing how to "defend the faith" with lovely facts and verses to back them up. Maybe life should be more like good art - it draws us to wonder, it makes us pause to reflect, it moves us to see clearer, and it leaves us with even more questions and an urge to create art ourselves.

So create, use your imagination, and maybe then mystery will bring us the freedom we need to make room for the hurting, the drunk, and those in the fringes of our culture.

my next blog will be...

2009-04-28T02:30:00.002-04:00

I don't know what to write about anymore, so my next blog will be decided by way of a poll, because I really don't know what to write. I have a suspicion that no one even reads this and no one will vote.

in case you were wondering....

2009-02-15T20:23:00.003-05:00

a peculiar resemblance

2009-01-25T17:36:00.006-05:00

Fig. 1 - Plato and Aristotle
Plato (arm pointing up):
ultimate reality is in what we cannot see, ideas and thoughts, up in a realm of essence
Aristotle (arm pointed horizontally):
ultimate reality is concrete and touchable, down here on earth

Fig. 2 - Obama and Biden
Obama: Hope and Change
Biden: Riding the train into Philly

Darth Vader in Japan

2009-01-19T16:09:00.000-05:00

2009-01-18T15:42:00.001-05:00

I have been forgiven.... by Mastercard

2009-01-16T19:45:00.003-05:00

My grandfather was very proud of the fact that he never had a credit card. He believed that you shouldn't spend money you don't have, quite simple. I believe we shouldn't even spend the money we DO have, we need to give most of it away, because we don't need it. Anyway... back to credit cards.

I have a credit card, and I actually make money by using it. For every 100 dollars I spend, I get 1 dollar (or 100 "points"). Now, most credit card companies base this on the assumption that by using it, you will end up LOOSING money by spending money you don't have, and paying exorbitant interest fees. So giving you $1 is nothing in comparison to the $50 you are giving them in interest fees.

Similarly, AirMiles cards sell your shopping habit information and make a larger profit than you get in "airmiles". For instance, whenever you use an airmiles card, you are selling your information to market research companies that track all of your spending, and in return you receive fake money in the shape of... miles? I thought we were metric anyway? They should be AirKilometers. I also don't use airmiles cards; I find it weird to sell my shopping information, and even weirder is the fact that it's actually worth something, even if it's fake money.

So, credit cards....

I missed a payment in December.

Why? I just forgot.

So, I looked at my bill, and they charged me a $70 interest fee! HOLY CRAP! I have had a credit card for 5 years and I had not once been charged interest. Craziness! Isn't it curious how the highest interest rate for people to earn money through a good habit like saving is probably 4% in a savings account - yet the lowest credit card interest rates are what... 18%? Something is seriously wrong.

I picked up the phone and called them up.

Me: Hi, I was charged $70 as an interest fee and I think that it's unfair. I have paid every bill on time in the last 5 years, and this seems ridiculous.

MC: Why did you miss the payment?

Me: I forgot, and paid it a few days late.

MC: Ok, I will process the request and you will be notified in 2-3 business days

Me: Thanks!

Today: *FINANCE CHARGE* PURCHASES REFUND - 70.08

small business loans in Bolivia

2009-01-10T22:55:00.004-05:00

One of the biggest problems in developing countries is not having enough resources to be able to start or improve a business. Educated people with great ideas simply don't have the capital to open a store, buy a taxi, or buy products to sell on the street. While $25 might not seem like a lot to a person living in Canada or the USA, it's more than a weeks wages for some of the people that need micro-loans.

You can actually give interest-free loans to people in countries like Bolivia through an organization called Kiva.

"Kiva's mission is to connect people through lending for the sake of alleviating poverty."

In Bolivia, Kiva is partnering with an organization called AgroCapital:

"Agrocapital's mission is to promote the economic development of Bolivia and consequently to increase the welfare level of the Bolivian population by helping the rural productive sector through the provision of short and medium-term credit for rural production, processing, transportation, distribution as well as other complementary services targeted at small and micro-enterprises."

pollo postmoderno

2008-11-11T18:38:00.009-05:00

In my hometown of Santa Cruz, we have this awesome chicken place that is called Pollo Moderno. It's small, dirty, and has the best chicken in the world. I wonder if they will ever switch their name to Pollo Postmoderno to fit in better with the times? I would only hope so.

Anyway, it's time to....

Cook With Mikey!

Today's featured recipe is "Bourbon Chicken"

Ingredients:
* 2 lbs boneless chicken breasts, cut into bite-size pieces
* 1-2 tablespoon olive oil
* 1 garlic clove, crushed (or a teaspoon of minced garlic)
* 1/4 teaspoon ginger
* 3/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
* 1/4 cup apple juice
* 1/3 cup light brown sugar
* 2 tablespoons ketchup
* 1 tablespoon cider vinegar
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/3 cup soy sauce

Step 1: Cut up chicken into squares, or strips, or any shape you really want to.

Step 2: Fry the chicken with the olive oil, until it doesn't look like nasty raw chicken anymore, but not fully cooked, just until it looks like grandpa's extra elbow skin... you know? White, soft, and kinda soggy.

Step 3: Remove chicken

Step 4: Add in all the other stuff to the pan, and let it all mix together nicely until it looks like a big brown thing.

Step 5: Put the Chicken back in the pan, bring to a fierce boil, and then let bring the heat down, and let it simmer for a bit, until the sauce thickens. I added a bit of cornstarch to make it thicker.

Serve it over some rice... and there you go!

*recipe taken from RecipeZaar, you can find it here

online kettles

2008-10-15T02:45:00.001-04:00

You know those people that sit by the red kettles and ring a bell at your local wal-mart or mall? Sometimes they wear some old uniform, other times they look like death, and one time I saw someone sleeping by their kettle of duty. Apparently, when a person is present at the kettle the money raised is substantially higher. How do I know this? Well, I happen to be a part of the Salvation Army church here in Vernon, BC!

I had an idea today... how cool would it be to have an online kettle where people could give online?

Where does all this money go? Well, it depends on the particular city you are in, and what that specific Salvation Army does in the community. I can't speak for any other Salvation Armies, but I can tell you a little about what we do.

We are the only food bank in Vernon. It looks kind of like a mini Costco, sometimes filled with food to the roof, and other times... bare. We feed thousands of people each year! I get to see it almost every day, and it's pretty amazing.

We are a fair trade coffeehouse called the Talkin' Donkey. It's a not-for-profit coffeehouse with a cause. It's a place for the community at large to intersect with our spiritual community; a place to hang out, meet people, hear some live music, and strike up a conversation about life. We set an example by being responsible for what we drink and eat by being fair trade, and we are an environmentally conscious coffeehouse that tries very hard to have as minimal of a footprint as possible.

We are a spiritual community that meet in small groups we call "living rooms" to nurture friendships and disciple each other in the ways of Jesus. We learn about becoming selfless, giving to others, loving each other, and we even train to run races together.

Those are some of the things that we do here in Vernon! The Christmas Kettle's are important to us because they provide a lot of our funding so that we can serve our community.

My question for you is this:

How do we bring the kettle to the web?

I'd love any ideas for how to make this "online kettle" thing work!

stories from my elevator

2008-09-25T21:14:00.003-04:00

I live in the beautiful Capri Gardens Apartments of downtown Vernon. Capri Gardens, where the hallways smell of marijuana, the elevator door opens before it reaches it's destination, the laundry machines are never fully operational, and there are random cats that linger all over. Full of diverse misfits, this apartment building's crown jewel is the elevator.

The funniest thing about this elevator is what is usually written on it's walls. When I first walked into the elevator, the strong smell of paint struck me as odd, but now I have come to realize that this elevator is painted practically a few times each week.

I have no idea who it is, but someone in the building loves writing things in the elevator. I like to think of them as the Elevator Poet. However, the lack of creativity in this persons writing is rather upsetting. They concentrate on writing about suction acts upon one's bodily parts, sexual intercourse imperatives, and genitalia. Never longer than 2 or 3 words, these elevator poems seem filled with angst and are always very demanding. I feel like whenever I hop on the elevator, someone is telling me how to live my life, and giving me very bad advice.

Enter Cecil. His job is to manage several of the apartments in the building. He receives payment for rent, handles bills, and censors the elevator poet. Before his weekly painting of the elevator happens, he first goes about censoring the words by simply adding letters or changing letters to redeem discouraging offensive messages about one's sexual behaviour and changing them to encouraging and uplifting messages to carry you through the day. Here are some examples:

"FUC* YOU!" turns into "ROCK YOU!" (most common one)

and

"COC*" turns into "ROCK"

The funniest thing to me is that there is one word that he simply has not been able to alter. One word that for some reason he has not been able to change into a positive encouragement message. And that word is "Penis". Instead of finding a way to alter it, he simply scribbles all over it, trying to render it unreadable, which only adds power to it's original message. Then again, I really have no idea what original message is intended, besides to remind us of the male reproductive organ.

Here are some things I've been thinking of publishing in our elevator:

"Believe in your dreams, unless they involve being eating by a dinosaur. In that case, don't believe in them because dinosaurs are extinct"

"Male Mountain Goats urinate while standing up"

"The weird screeching noise you hear is not the elevator, it's a dying cat, so there is nothing to worry about"

things I find hilarious

2008-09-18T23:57:00.002-04:00

I find this picture hilarious. Let me tell you why...

1) A cat is jumping out of a cake
2) The cat seems to have pre-meditated this act, because he took the time to print off a nice sheet of paper with his message
3) It's the poor little .. girl... err... boys, birthday!
4) This child's parents have horrible ways of communicating messages.

Fast forward 50 years, and there is a lemur jumping out of a ham sandwich holding a sign saying "you have a terminal illness!"

A Plea to Bolivians

2008-09-17T15:54:00.001-04:00

I'm not sure how many people are aware of the recent political instability in Bolivia, so I thought I would just share a bit about what's been going on lately.

This past weekend, things got a bit messy in the northern Department (like a state or province) of Pando and it ended with an estimated death toll of 30 with dozens of others injured. The New York Times had an article about this situation entitled "A Crisis Highlights Divisions in Bolivia", which brilliantly summarizes the fact that this incident is one of many that has brought into international attention the depth and urgency of the problems arising from the divisions in Bolivia.

Bolivia is a post-colonialized nation, and there are tensions going back hundreds of years to the foundation of how the country started. To summarize hundreds of years of history and oversimplify issues that are too complex to understand would be insane, but I think the basic underlying issue is simple and it is this: Equality.

With an indigenous majority in the 70 percentile (and some say even higher), Bolivia has been politically and economically dominated since the beginning by the white, European descendants that have not only controlled the policy making, money spending, and constitutional rights, but also have spread a doctrine of white superiority.

I myself come from such a family line. My great-great grandfather was president of Bolivia, and although I don't know a thing about what he did, I can assume he would only espouse such ideals. Even closer to myself, my grandfather was Secretary of State during one of Bolivia's most corrupt dictatorships, that of Hugo Banzer. In my blood lines is this ideal that white people are better, and that we need to run the country and keep all the indigenous people in their place. And for that, I am very heartbroken.

This division does not end with the racial issues between the European decent families and the indigenous community - it goes further. There are also geographical lines that separate distinct indigenous communities as well as Bolivian cultures. The Western Provinces which have their headquarters in La Paz, and the Eastern Provinces which make Santa Cruz their head. These two sides split Bolivia geographically down the middle and along with the Andes mountains, create a huge division between the people. Growing up, most of the jokes I heard were making fun of the other Bolivians who were stereotyped as lazy uneducated idiots that set their houses on fire and can't play soccer.

Growing up, these issues were simply that - jokes to be told. Deep rooted issues that no one talked about and simply accepted. That is, until we elected the first indigenous president, Evo Morales.

He has brought to the spotlight a lot of repressed Bolivian problems that have exploded like a bag of fireworks I used to buy from the corner store for about 5 Bolivianos. And now people are angry. Morales, of indigenous decent from the western province of Oruro, is hated by many and loved by many. The tensions between the East and West, one side wanting autonomy and a federalist government and the other wanting a centralized republic, the anger and issues between indigenous and those of european or other backgrounds, mixed in with the economical issues of oil and gas, and the political issues of the new re-written constitution, have created a recipe for disaster that has been escalating constantly for months.

Maybe the worst is over, and I certainly hope it is, but the issues are not going away, and one conference of presidents won't fix it, and a new constitution won't fix it, and a new president surely would not fix it. This is a problem ALL Bolivians must face and take ownership of. Until we can reconcile our differences, learn to accept each other for who we are, and live in unity and LOVE each other, this will not go away.

So if you are Bolivian and are reading this, please, love your neighbour, no matter what they look like or where they are from. Bake some Salteñas and go over to their house and have lunch with them, and then watch some soccer together. Because we are a beautiful country that deserves more than all this crap! We are hospitable, we are caring, we are awesome people that know how to enjoy life! And we are also messed up and need healing from all these things that have been going on for so long. So instead of complaining about our president and complaining about everything, let it start with your own heart.

If you are interested in reading more about the current crisis in Bolivia, here are some amazing articles written by amazing people that will really help you understand the situation:

Blog From Bolivia: "Bolivia at the Abyss: A Special Report"

Ukhampacha Bolivia: "Testimonies from the Pando Massacre" (warning: some graphic content)

New York Times: "A Crisis Highlights Divisions in Bolivia

Buek! an introduction

2008-08-19T20:22:00.013-04:00

You can tell who your best friends are by seeing who drives you to, or picks you up from, the airport. On one of many drives back to Hamilton from the Buffalo airport, Matt, Jess, and I were listening to a very intense preacher on some program that was probably called "Freedom Village USA", "God loves Guns", "Republicans that love Jesus and Guns too", or maybe even "I marinate all my meat in an American flag." Either way, you get the idea of what this radio show was like. Very American, very Republican, very.... awful. I really have no idea what this specific show was about, I think it was about why you should beat your children, but in his very evocative appeal to parents across America, this person concluded their argument with one line, and this was the line:

Because.... God only wrote one book.

Although, phonetically it sounded more like "Gawd onleh rote hwun buek" due to the speakers Texan accent.

There you have it folks, that's all you really need to know. If you want to justify anything you do, just finish off with that sentence, and you will be good to go! The three of us in the car were so struck by this conclusion, that it quickly became a line that we repeat to each other in any given circumstance.

And in the spirit of "God only wrote one book", I am going to be doing a series of book reviews on this blog entitled "Buek!"

What inspired me to start reviewing books was that I actually got some books for free when I offered to review them on my blog. I was actually supposed to be reviewing a book by today, that I still have not got in the mail, so instead of reviewing it, I will post some information about the book and then hopefully soon I will get it in the mail (hint).

Wild Goose Chase

Most of us have no idea where we’re going most of the time. Perfect.

“Celtic Christians had a name for the Holy Spirit–An Geadh-Glas, or ‘the Wild Goose.’ The name hints at mystery. Much like a wild goose, the Spirit of God cannot be tracked or tamed. An element of danger, an air of unpredictability surround Him. And while the name may sound a little sacrilegious, I cannot think of a better description of what it’s like to follow the Spirit through life. I think the Celtic Christians were on to something….

Most of us will have no idea where we are going most of the time. And I know that is unsettling. But circumstantial uncertainty also goes by another name: Adventure.” --from the introduction.

Author Bio:
Mark Batterson is the lead pastor of Washington, DC’s National Community Church, widely recognized as one of America’s most innovative churches. NCC meets in movie theaters at metro stops throughout the city, as well as in a church-owned coffee house near Union Station. More than seventy percent of NCC’ers are single twentysomethings who live or work on Capitol Hill. Mark is the author of the best-selling In a Pit with a Lion on a Snowy Day and a widely read blogger (www.markbatterson.com). He lives on Capitol Hill with his wife, Lora, and their three children.

You can purchase the book at a place like amazon or chapters. You can also check out the books website here.

lol? not so much.

2008-07-24T23:47:00.002-04:00

Laughing in type is quite challenging. The whole idea behind written laughter is new to our generation in many ways. While reading a book, you never read "lol" or "hahah" or anything of that sort; you read "and she laughed" or.. "and they laughed their faces off". Now, written language is used in daily conversations. This phenomenon has led to the invention of "words" such as "lol", "rofl", "l8r", "cya", and even "brb". And for some reason, I have always been quite against such things, especially "lol". I'm feel as if phonetically communicating my emotion presents a much more accurate depiction of my feelings and thoughts.

For instance, let's use laughter as an example. Here is a chart that explains it all.

As you can see, this chart shows the correlation between how funny something is and the amount of "ha's" it deserves. It's pretty simple. Let me illustrate:

An episode of The Office: "hahahahahahahahah"

Shrek 3: "ha?"

I hope you now see why using "ha's" is a much better way of laughter.

your mom!!

2008-07-23T20:13:00.002-04:00

I love my mom. Sometimes my mom does crazy things like goes to Hawaii as a keynote speaker, moves to another country by surprise, or even appears in a local newspaper.

Today I was talking to my mom and as it turns out, she was in the local Smyrna Sun Times! You can find it here.

Also, I was in the paper here in Vernon. On the cover of the Seniors section. That's right, Seniors. I didn't even know papers had Seniors sections! I guess that's what happens when the majority of your city's populous is made up of senior citizens.

race

2008-07-17T03:20:00.002-04:00

So today I signed up for a 10k Run in October. Right now I can run maybe 0.5 K before collapsing. I really hope that changes by October.

I think the best way to accomplish goals is to set time limits, be specific about them, and be able to measure them. Signing up for the run was a bit scary, because it's committing myself to a path that means I need to work hard to reach a specific goal. But it's also very exciting, because it gives me something to look forward to and it will feel great if I can actually accomplish it. I know 10k might not seem like much to most people, but for my asthma-ridden lungs, it will be a challenge.

I think my long-term goal will be to run a marathon.

Which is weird, because I've always hated running.

I had this idea of an invention for people that run or jog: it's a giant mask that would cover your entire head and make you look semi-mascot-like. I think what I hate most about running and jogging is knowing people are watching me. So, with a giant mask, all of that could be avoided. Plus, you could have the masks be of famous people like Martin Luther, Trogdor, Einstein, and Jane Austen. How cool would it be to see Jane Austen running around your neighbourhood?

Maybe I will wear a racing outfit like the guys in the movie Juno.

yes, I am a nerd

2008-07-15T02:12:00.007-04:00

2.0

I upgraded my iPod Touch to version 2.0 - yay! For those of you who don't know what that means... let me explain. Apple has a history of being control freaks with allowing people to develop software for their hardware. In the early days, there wasn't even a lot of software made for Mac because of this, and this made the PC a huge selling point. Fast forward about 15 years, and Apple has now been fairly lax about people developing for their mainstream OS. However, being as "trendy" as they are now, they can afford to be tighter with their rules. The basic OS of the iPod Touch and iPhone is a closed one (which can be hacked here here or here), and Apple wants to regulate everything that goes onto it. In the 1.0 version of this OS, you basically could surf the web, and use the apps that Apple packed with the device, and that was it, unless you wanted to hack it... that is. Now, with 2.0, comes a whole new whack of options, that are regulated by Apple. I enjoy being able to use more applications, and some of them are fantastic, but I still feel a bit weird that Apple gets to decide what I can and cannot use. It seems 1984ish. Which coincidentally, is my birth year.

Googleing 101

Many times I find myself helping people "google" things. Also, it's funny how we use the word google instead of "search on the internet". I guess "google" is just easier to say. I wonder if people will use that phrase when Google is gone? Then again, Google will never be gone. Anyway, as I was saying, I find myself searching for things, and people saying "WOW! how did you find that? I was searching for HOURS and didn't find a thing". I feel bad for them, because it's really not that hard.

So, in hopes of helping those of you out there that are horrible googlers (you know who you are), here are some tips! For a more in detail guide, visit The Essentials of Google Search.

1. Use Quotation Marks
this one is great if you ever want to find a person. We all do it. Potential relationships, potential bosses, a friend we just met at work, an old friend from high school, or maybe even yourself. When you put your search in quotation marks, it searches for exactly that phrase. For instance, if I was searching for Mitchell Edwards, I would type this in: "Mitchell Edwards" and see what comes up.

2. Use Negatives
If you want to search for Bass, but not the musical instrument, type Bass -music
That will give you every search result for Bass, that doesn't have the word music in it.

3. Come up with good search words
Say you wanted to find Micah Van Dijk's extension at Redeemer University College (I want to find that all the time). Think of words you can use... like.. Redeemer Universtiy College, and... Micah... and Staff. So I would type this in Google:

"Redeemer University College" staff micah phone

and immediately get results! (4289, for those of you wondering).

so, next time you go googleing around, think about these things, and improve your search methods! There are SO MANY ways to search... we have only covered the basics, but if you want to go crazy, try using an ampersand or an asterisks, you will be blown away.

Also, I saw fresh bear poo today while on a hike. How cool is that? I submit that it is very cool.

sorry Bolivia, you don't get the iphone

2008-06-25T18:23:00.003-04:00

Notice something about this map? It seems as if almost EVERY country in the America's is getting an iphone! Except for... you got it... Bolivia.

In many ways it's probably a good thing for Bolivians. Illegal iphones are much cheaper and come with better plans.

Anyone thinking of getting an iphone on July 11th?

best Colbert Report yet

2008-06-20T18:37:00.002-04:00

lesters thoughts.gov/awesome

2008-06-20T03:14:00.002-04:00

My car is not doing so hot. I put some 2x4's in to work as rear suspension, and they have been doing a pretty good job, but I think soon the wheels will go through the back window. My roommate tells me I shouldn't take it on long road trips, he seems to think that 2 pieces of wood aren't a good enough repair for rear suspension, but so far I've been on a few road trips. Also I am 0/87 on my Safeway scratch-cards, I have a feeling I will win soon.

Vernon vs. Hamilton - round 1

2008-06-18T12:55:00.002-04:00

Gas Prices

Vernon - $1.41
Hamilton - $1.31

Hamilton 1, Vernon 0

Mountains

Hamilton - The Escarpment
Vernon - Silver Star Mountain

Hamilton 1, Vernon 1

Pato Aventuras

2008-05-09T14:19:00.006-04:00

earlier this week, felix posted the intro theme song to "duck tales". At first I was excited to listen to it, to be reminded of my childhood, so I started to play it. I quickly realized I didn't know a single word to the song, and I was confused. I finally figured out the reason why this childhood memory seemed so disjointed- it was because I never saw "Duck Tales", I only saw .. "Pato Aventuras", the spanish version of Duck Tales.

and here is the theme song that *I* grew up with:

and while we're on this topic...

Chip Y Dale, Rescatadores:

Los Ositos Gummi:

lesters thoughts.gov/awesome

2008-05-07T23:43:00.003-04:00

My roommate is hilarious. His name is Lester. Lester is twice my size. Lester is a Jamaican from Nova Scotia. Lester is 52.

Lester Thoughts - part 1

Today someone dropped a box off on my deck. I thought it was my roommate's, since he just moved in a few days ago. Turns out it wasn't, instead it was some vacuum cleaner parts in an old Smirnoff box. hahahahahahahahahaha - joe makes me laugh. ok, i'm gonna go watch some UFC.

deep thoughts

2008-05-06T22:32:00.003-04:00

I was thinking today about what I would say to my Tae Kwan Do instructor if she ever asks me to do something that I really don't want to do - like take out the garbage, or clean the sweat off of the practice mats. After little deliberation, I decided I would face her and say "I Tae Kwan Don't!"

My dojo has a sign that says "Hassan's Tae Kwan Do W.T.F". I've always wondered what the W.T.F. stands for. If you don't believe me, go to their website and see for yourself.

yummmm

2008-04-17T16:03:00.001-04:00

tonight...

2008-04-04T14:21:00.001-04:00

... I am going to see Brian Regan. Yay.

best albums ever, so far..

2008-03-16T19:44:00.010-04:00

this is my attempt to put together what I think are some of the best albums ever, so far. some of these albums aren't even on my ipod, but I still think they are golden.

here is felix's list.

Jars of Clay - Jars of Clay

for me this album embodies a time before I knew how to understand lyrics, and as time passed, the album grew richer and richer. Also, this album has a hidden track at the end of the last song... classic 90s.

Donde Estan Los Ladrones? - Shakira

before Shakira started singing in English, she was really good, and this is the proof.

Maroon - Barenaked Ladies

I can listen to this album without ever pressing "next". I love the cleverness of their lyrics and they always make me laugh.

No Name Face - Lifehouse

I'm not sure what a "lifehouse" is, but that doesn't really matter, because this album rocks.

Continuum - John Mayer

John Mayer is a genius with white space. I had a dream once where I was his backup guitar and vocals at the grammys, and we rocked. At one point we were playing guitars while doing a "cirque de soleil" style climbing of giant red sheets.

Sleep Through The Static - Jack Johnson

listening to Jack Johnson is like eating a really good bowl of ice cream that never ends.

Mute Math - Mute Math

they are better live than on the album, and that says a lot. the best part of the band is the drummer, and he's also a really nice guy.

The Beautiful Letdown - Switchfoot

an album packed with meaning, culture critique, symbols, and great music and lyrics to blow your mind for years.

my next list will be "best one hit wonders, ever"

¿Que Hora Es?

2008-03-14T08:47:00.001-04:00

¿Que Hora Es? - The Mexican soap opera for those who only have 3 weeks of Spanish in the fourth grade.

it's picture time!

2008-03-06T21:25:00.004-05:00

you know how I know? Cuz it's Thursday, and Thursday is the night I show pictures...

This week I went to visit my Uncle Hans' farm, and here is a bit from that trip.

Fig. 1 - Friggin Big Spider

Fig. 2 - Uncle Hans, 100% Dutch, 100% Bolivian, 10,000% Hilarious

Fig. 3 - The view from the top of the farm

the headless snowman

2008-02-26T17:14:00.014-05:00

Concierto de Aranjuez

I sat in the second row and could almost see the sweat coming off of his forehead as he played. At a few points in the concert, he even cried. I have heard this piece many times, I think I even own 2 different recordings, and have listed to this piece more than any other guitar music I have, yet listening to it live was a completely new experience that I was not expecting. Being IN the moment was so much bigger, immediate, and emotional. I think everyone needs to hear this piece live at least once. This is definitely the first of many times I hope to hear this music.

Being Home
One of my favorite things about being home is spending time with my sister. This week there was a "snowstorm" in Delaware (which in Canadian would translate to "light snow") and we decided to make a snowman! I soon realized this was the FIRST snowman I had ever made with my sister, since we did not have snow growing up. It was a lot of fun. Eventually the sun came up and the head melted off, but it lasted for a solid two days.

Later this week I am heading to the homeland, Bolivia. Here is a new game that I just came up with as I write this sentence... it's called:

Which one of Mikey's CRAZIEST stories would you like picture proof of?

While I might not have the capacity to go back in time and take pictures, I will have the capacity to visit locations where stories happened, and give a bit of a background story. Whether it's a Bolivian circus, a crazy electrocuted guinea pig, a chicken farm in my backyard, crazy buses that almost kill you, my Dutch-Bolivian cousins, or the garbage pick-up horse and buggy, I will do my best to get some photo proof! Submit your entries as comments to this blog or email them to me, and I can see what I can do.

Disclaimer: Only citizens of the following countries are eligible to win any prizes: Algeria, Namibia, Morocco, Pakistan, Liberia, Saudi Arabia, Bolivia, Chile, Uruguay, Panama, Costa Rica, Vietnam, Denmark, Croatia, Portugal, San Marino, and Andorra. All entries are subject to my discretion and judgement, and I can do whatever I want. All contestants must be over 19 years of age, and taller than 5'4''. No contestants with beards will be allowed. Any kind of facial hair is discouraged. There is a hidden fee of $8 that you are subject to upon entering this contest. I guess it's not that hidden anymore. Also, by reading this blog, you have agreed to donate $500 to World Vision. You can make your donation by putting that amount of cash in an unmarked black plastic bag on the doorstep of 421 Kitty Murray Lane and knocking on the door 5 times (please come during office hours). Also, bears.

new and old

2008-02-19T22:10:00.005-05:00

I arrived in Delaware on Saturday, and found that someone had affectionally packed some garbage into my suitcase. Thank you, Felix.

You know that feeling of when you see someone you haven't seen in a long long time? Things have changed, they have grown, you have grown, they are married, you are not... and the first little while is awkward and weird.

That's how I feel right now, with everything.

I am going to Bolivia next week. I am very excited, and I am also very scared. I won't recognize a lot of things. I will see my little cousins.... being not so little any more. I will notice new paved roads, new restaurants, more stray dogs, etc. And, most importantly, I will notice how much I have changed.

I think that's what scares me the most, noticing my own change. I will go to my house, and see strangers living in it. Only one of my friends from school is still living in the same city, everyone else has moved to north america. I will see a lot of poverty, and feel pretty useless. I will go to my old school, and see some of my old teachers, and make THEM feel old. I will go eat at some of my favourite restaurants, and realize how good food can really be. I will take buses and and taxis, and realize how BAD drivers can be. I think the cool thing will be to reflect on how different I am now, and see what God has been doing in my life since I left. Hopefully I notice that I am doing better at loving people.

Also, I'm planning on going to Machu Pichhu, how cool is that? Apparently it takes 2 days to get there, and it's only a few dollars. If you don't know what it is, it is an old Inca sanctuary built on top of the mountains. The Incas built it when the Spaniard Conquistadores came and started killing people all around. They built it as a safe-haven where the Spaniards never found them. Eventually they died off anyway, but left this beautiful place in the mountains for tourists to now see. My ancestry is partially Spanish and Inca, so it will be a cool place to visit. I will be sure to post a lot of pictures. However, as a disclaimer, I will only go if there is no unrest or closed roads. Sometimes the roads are too bad, or there are people getting killed by mobs on the roads, which would really ruin the trip for me. So, if "conditions are perfect", I will go, maybe on a Wednesday, when there's nothing good on tv anyway.

In the more immediate future... This thursday I am going to hear the Concierto de Aranjuez. My all-time favorite orchestral work. It was written by Rodrigo, in 1939. And here is a video of the Adagio:

the guitar the guy is using has about 12 strings I think, but you don't need a guitar like that to be able to play it, I have heard other guitar players do the piece with only 6 strings. I can probably play it with 1 string.... no, 0 strings... no, I can play it just using my mind, not even with a guitar... yeahh...

unexpected vacation

2008-02-14T16:31:00.003-05:00

Dear Friends,

As most of you know, my application to remain in Canada has been refused and now I must go for the time being. If all goes well, I will be back in April, and moving to beautiful British Columbia.

Over the next several weeks, I will be in the States and Bolivia, visiting family, working on paperwork, and meeting up with old friends.

So what does this mean for this blog?

1. LOTS OF BLOGGING because I will have a lot of free time....
2. LOTS OF PICTURES because I will be in BOLIVIA, which means cool odd pictures with llamas and circuses

I will keep you updated on what's going on in my life, and show you lots of pictures of where I am!
Also, here are some of my goals to do before the end of April:
- Finish Harry Potter
- Speak tons of Spanish
- See my extended family
- Eat some Bolivian Chicken... mmmm... chicken...
- Go to a Bolivian Circus and take a lot of pictures
- Not get killed at a soccer game

More to come SOON... keep posted!

vintage retro design

2008-01-28T20:45:00.001-05:00

Lately I've been into doing a lot of photoshop tutorials. They are a great way to learn skills doing hands-on designing with very specific goals in mind. I find that they give me good ideas, teach me some cool tricks and, overall, they are fun to do. If you are a designer and don't visit Smashing Magazine, you need to go there right now. Here is a link to their "best of" photoshop tutorials. You can find the one i just did here.

oh the things I say...

2008-01-25T13:51:00.000-05:00

This is what I said to a grade 7 kid last night:

"If I had a million dollars, I'd make a time machine and travel to the future, to the day of your wedding and give you a giant wedgie. Then, I'd travel back to right now and say "ha ha! future wedgie!"

note: we all laughed and no one was hurt.

my fake band

2008-01-13T22:11:00.000-05:00

I say we all make fake band CD covers....

From Typophile:

Instructions:

You will create an album cover for a fictitious band, using a
fictitious album name and an image from Flickr. Follow these
steps below. Design your album and post it to this Battle
thread by Friday, 5pm Pacific.

1. The first article title on the Wikipedia Random Articles page
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random) is the name of
your band.

2. The last four words of the very last quotation on the Random
Quotations page (http://www.quotationspage.com/random.php3)
is the title of your album.

3. The third picture in Flickr’s Interesting Photos From The Last
7 Days (http://www.flickr.com/explore/interesting/7days/) will
be your album cover.

4. Use your graphics application of choice to throw them together,
and post the result.

picture telephone

2007-12-23T21:37:00.000-05:00

the squirrel that lives in my walls

2007-12-13T11:46:00.001-05:00

If you know me, and few of you do, you know that I am quite an animal whisperer, here is a list of animals I have at one point had as my own:

1. A Chicken Farm
2. Tuki the Tucan
3. Moe the Land Turtle
4. Parrots
5. Bunnies (Chompiras & Twister)
6. Beto my Shnauzer
7. A pet Rock
8. A Cactus (or Captus as I used to say)
9. Benito and Señor Gato (my two cats)
10. Toby & Rex the Hamsters
...and more animals that I probably forgot...

Enter Blog-stage left: Exhibit A

<---- This is a picture of the wall in my basement, in the room adjacent to my bedroom.

As you can tell, it has been perforated.

Not by human hand, but by squirrel... claws?

I am not a stranger to squirrels. In the Fall of 2006, as I briskly walked to buy some groceries at the local No Frills on Mohawk and Upper James street carrying my reusable bags, a squirrel came up to me and sat on my foot. I was quite confused, since previous squirrels I had met did not display the same behaviour, quite the opposite in fact. This little fellow, which I dubbed, "Buddy the Squirrel", was very friendly, and soon climbed up my pant leg, onto my arm, and perched itself onto my shoulders. I was quite astonished at this point, and exuberant with glee. My self-confidence was through the roof. "If a squirrel likes me this much, I must be awesome", I thought to myself.

I took the squirrel home, dropped it off, and headed back to No Frills. At No Frills, I neglected my own food needs, and instead just bought a bunch of nuts to feed my new friend, Buddy. I jogged home, excited to feed my new friend some Brazilian Hazelnuts. As I opened my door, I saw him resting on my couch, enjoying the fireplace. I put some nuts in my hand and offered him some. He ran over and grabbed some instantly. He began to slowly chew away at them, smiling like a little puppy squirrel would.

Eventually, my landlord found out I had a pet squirrel and admitted she had an irrational fear of squirrels, or... squirrel-o-phobia if you will.

I took buddy on a walk around the neighbourhood before I said my goodbyes. I sat him on my head, and we walked around the streets of Hamilton. Several people stared at me with confused faces, as if saying "What is that man doing with a squirrel on his head?" But I simply ignored them and cherished my last moments with Buddy. As we walked down Mohawk road, I pet it's little tiny head, telling it that everything was going to be alright. I took buddy to a park behind my house, and set him on a tree, where he was to survive all on his own. As I started to walk away, I noticed he quickly ran out of the tree and back onto my pants. "Buddy, don't make this harder than it already is", I told him. I put him back on the tree, but he quickly ran back to me, as if saying "don't leave me!" I put him on another tree, higher up this time, and ran away so he wouldn't find me. I saw buddy on the tree, confused and cold, and I said my goodbye. "Bye Buddy, we had fun times, but now you must leave the nest and make it in the big world of squirrels. I'll never forget you."

Now it's winter of 2007, over a year later, and the adventure continues. Instead of Buddy the nice squirrel, this one is evil, and it feasts on insulation. Instead of perching itself on my shoulders and cuddling in my fleece sweater, it eats dry wall, makes loud noises in the air vents, and disturbs my sleep.

Here is a copy of my eviction notice to the Squirrel

TO: Squirrel
Apartment 809 - Living Inside My Walls
Ancaster, ON L7M O4P

Pursuant to the provisions of RSA 540:9, you are hereby given an eviction notice and notice to vacate, on or before December 20, 2007, the premises and appurtenances owned by the humans.

As your landlord, I hereby give you this notice of eviction.

The reason for this eviction notice is:

Your failure to be a nice squirrel, and the incessant noise you make with chewing nuts that is driving me crazy. You have also failed to comply to our rent agreement RSA 890:4. And your mom smells bad, oh snap.

I hereby certify that on the day of December 13, 2007, at 12:38 pm I gave in hand to/left at the abode of The Squirrel, above named, a true copy of the above original notice.

Surely We Can Change

2007-12-06T12:10:00.001-05:00

This week with the Sr. High, we talked about loving everyone. Especially people who are hard to love. I made this video to highlight a David Crowder song about love, about how when we see Jesus' love we can get frustrated because we really don't know how to love like he did.

time

2007-11-29T12:22:00.001-05:00

my other blog

2007-11-13T09:43:00.002-05:00

For those of you who might be interested in youth ministry, I have another blog that is just for that. You can find it here: theIntern Blog.

what's in your garbage?

2007-11-04T22:45:00.001-05:00

You know how sometimes things people say to you stick in your head forever? When I left Bolivia to move to Canada, everyone had one little nugget of wisdom to give me... so that I could use in Canada. Most of them were along the lines of "wear some rabbit wool underwear!", or "make sure to have 2 pairs of socks on!" or even "bring me back some snow!" (the last one was from my little sister).

However, this one was my favorite nugget of wisdom:

Make sure to look through their garbage!

At first I was quite perplexed, so I asked further. "Why their garbage?". And their response was "because what to them is garbage, to us is gold!"

Yesterday, this nugget came very alive to me. Isn't it amazing what we consider garbage? I use the term "we" to mean the common "consumer" in a north american culture.

My housemate Andrew came running in the door and said, "Come help me, I found a giant TV someone is throwing out!" At first I assumed the worst - it's broken, damaged, or something is wrong with it.

I was wrong.

We rolled a 52 inch tv right into our living room. Works perfectly. We scratched it up a bit ourselves because we had to roll it for about 3 blocks on the road (since it could not fit into Andrew's Jeep), but besides the occasional road scratch, it was in mint condition.

So, what do you consider garbage?

I don't know much about the family that threw this TV out, but I'm going to imagine....

When they first bought their tv, they were perfectly happy with it, excited about the new technology of rear projection. They had their friends over to come and look at it, the mere size of it impresssed many. "52 inches? That's bigger than my house!", some would say. Years went by, and there was a steady decline in their contentment with their TV. Not because anything had changed with their tv, the conditions were exactly the same. However, the only factors that changed were: the technology available to be purchased, and the consumption message being sent. The TV that they owened was no longer being marketed, advertised, and therefore was not as desired. The TV went from being embraced and enjoyed, to being a cumbersome and old.

In some ways, what is to blame? Do we blame consumers, manufacturers, or maybe marketers? For one, I believe that new technology is not inherently evil, but perhaps the way in which the consumer market uses new technology to push a consumer agenda is flawed. We consume products that are in themselves the end product, and after a few years, we have to throw them out and get new ones. I heard that the average life of a cell-phone is 2 years. There *has* to be a way in which we can build structures for technology to have longer usability, lifespan, and use.

This method of consumption has severe economic and environmental consequences. Our landfills are being filled with old technology that is perfectuly useful, and our resources are being used to replace things we don't need instead of being used in compassionate ways.

So, what do you consider garbage? That sweater that has a tiny hole in it? Maybe that TV that's just a bit too small, or that sound system that only has 5.1 surround instead of 7.1? Maybe your car doesn't have power windows, or a loud muffler, or maybe the seats aren't comfy enough. That couch doesn't match your walls, or that winter coat isn't the right colour.

For me it's things like my laptop (as soon as I bought it, a new model came out the next week), my external hard drive (250 gigs is too small, anyone else feel that way?), and my guitar (every store I walk into tells me of new guitars that have better sound).

So, I struggle, and I learn to resist, but it's hard. Sometimes I give in, and I repent for those times, but I know that at least I'm learning.

What did you throw out today?

knee!

2007-10-29T12:13:00.001-04:00

My knee is gladly refusing to bend again. I was playing soccer with some 15 odd jr. high kids (which is great for my self-esteem) and my knee cracked again while I was doing a back-heel pass. This is the 4th time since last August that I have been rendered useless.

10 things that are much, much harder when your knee can't bend
1. Going to the bathroom
2. Sleeping (I like sleeping cuddled up like a fetus, now I am forced to sleep like a dead person)
3. Walking - distances seem 10 times longer
4. Putting my shoes on (worst thing in the world)
5. Sitting Down
6. Going on 5 hour bus rides back from Muskoka Woods
7. Calculus
8. Jumping
9. Balancing
10. STAIRS!!!

being a youth pastor

2007-10-22T23:37:00.001-04:00

As Felix pointed out in his blog, I have a lot of fun in my job. Here are some of the things I get to do:

- Plan pirate adventures
- Go on weekend retreats
- Hang out with youth
- Play lots of GAMES (running charades has become a favorite)
- Watch movies
- Play poker and guitar hero
- Eat a lot of junk food (especially chips)
- Stay in touch with youth culture

Having said that, this is the hardest thing I have ever done. I had no idea it would take so much energy to minister to youth. Sure, a lot of times I'm having a BLAST and doing crazy things and acting silly, but there's so much more to youth ministry. Sometimes it's hard to see God's image in some kids, when they are being jerks. Sometimes they break things and disrupt lessons I'm trying to teach. Sometimes they are really mean to each other. Sometimes they throw shoes at each other. Sometimes they just don't understand how to follow rules. One of the first things I did when I started this job was find my old youth pastor and send him an email thanking him for putting up with me.

The thing that keeps coming to my mind is how important it is to take youth seriously and really invest in their lives. If mature Christians hadn't taken the time to get to know me, hang out with me, and really gain my trust, my life would have been a lot harder. So, if you have youth in your lives, maybe a young sibling, or a friend in church, or a kid you see on the bus, start to see the importance of these relationships and see the responsibility that we have as mature Christians to be discipling and mentoring. It's a really hard thing to do, but it's so worth it.

Here's a video that was shown during one of our training sessions. I thought it was really good.

it's software time

2007-10-12T23:26:00.001-04:00

I enjoy software quite a bit. So I will share some of my recent software finds... most of them will be only for the mac (sorry my pc friends, go out and buy a mac).

Color Oracle (MAC & PC)
------------
This little app changes your screen so that you can see what it would be like to be colorblind. Did you know that Deuteranopia affects 5% of all males? Protanopia affects only about 2.5% of all males. Apparently females don't really get these color problems...

Sim Daltonism (MAC)
------------
Another colorblind application, this one only lets you see what it would be like in a little tiny window.

Kuler (Web App)
------------
So this isn't really software, but since I'm on a color-high, I thought I would talk about Kuler. It's an adobe online app that is great for making color schemes. You can save your schemes, look at schemes that other people have made, and really... just waste a heck of a lot of time.

Joost (MAC & PC)
------------
Tired of watching TV on a regular old TV? Now you can watch it from your computer! Joost has a lot of channels, some good and some bad, but it's free. It has one channel that shows "Strongest Man" all day. I like when they say things lie "He will carry this giant ancient Chinese Urn for 500 meters, or until his body completely SHUTS DOWN!!" I bet this whole internet tv thing will catch on... just wait and see

SMC Fan Control (MAC)
------------
One of my favorite little tiny apps. It tells me the speed my fan is going at (currently 1929 rpm) and it's temperature (59 C). Knowing the temperature and fan speed helps you keep your computer healthy by not letting it get too warm. AND, this trusty little app ALSO lets you control the fan speed, not that I do often, but knowing that I CAN, is very cool.

iStat (MAC)
------------
These are little toolbar apps that tell you anything from temparture, ram usage, CPU usage, network usage, fan speed, hard drive usage, and even bluetooth usage. That's a lot of usage information. I use it to tell me how my RAM and CPU are doing, and they are very pretty menu's too.

On a completely unrelated note, I played Guitar Hero today for the first time, and it made me super dizzy. Does anyone else get that?

jr high movies?

2007-10-09T16:22:00.000-04:00

I have a Jr. High movie night this coming Saturday. Does anyone have any suggestions for a good appropriate movie to show kids from grades 6-8?

Apparently, last year at one of our cross-regional events, someone thought "Anchorman" was appropriate, and showed it to hundreds of kids in our youth group at an event.

Is SecondHand Lions too old of a movie to show? I remember really liking that movie.

"please don't consider me the axis of evil"

2007-09-27T11:41:00.000-04:00

I'm putting two video's up, in case one of them expires or is removed.

Evo Morales on The Daily Show

2007-09-25T15:54:00.000-04:00

Make sure you watch The Daily Show tonight at 11:00 on Comedy Central, 12:00 on CTV. The President of Bolivia will be appearing on America's fake-news comedy show. A little strange, I will admit. But I'm very intrigued.... More posts to come after I watch.

Self Help Books To Motivate Your Life Part Deux

2007-09-17T23:57:00.001-04:00

I miss Felix. We should throw him parties so he comes to visit.

In other news...

I put both my contacts in the SAME eye.
I went camping this weekend, and it was very cold.
I started a new blog that I will reveal... soon.
The Office Season 4 starts soon, very excited.
Garner's new tunes are... bringing awesome back. They make John Mayer sound like a 5th grader playing the recorder (and I really like John Mayer).
I saw MuteMath live last weekend, and they rocked. If you don't know who they are, go listen now.

one time in dorm 23.....

2007-08-30T15:41:00.001-04:00

Do you ever find stuff that you wrote 5 years ago and think, "boy, I was completely stupid". It happens to me, but with stuff from last week...

I was rummaging through old papers today, and I found something hilarious. So hilarious in fact, that I decided to post it on this blog. It was cold winter night in dorm 23 at Redeemer University College, and we were bored out of our minds. We had played the bean game too many times, and we had tired of mafia. So what do we do, you might ask. Well, we wrote stories. Each person would write a few lines, cover half of their writing and pass it to the next person. This particular story, was written by 5 different people: the ever-so-devious Melissa Kuipers, the infamous grade 4 teacher Katrina Meerveld, myself, probably our favorite fair-trade friend Ashley Hayman, and the 5th person is unknown but most likely Dylon Nofziger or Mira, but I'm pretty sure Mira doesn't like pizza, but that's besides the point.

Now, the fun part is trying to guess who wrote what part. I have separated the story into chunks that were written by different people, see if you can guess who wrote them.
So, without any more adieu, here is the story.

Untitled Story from Dorm 23
This morning my dog took out the trash, I have trained him well.

Tomorrow he may write a novel, He's still in training or that. Or maybe he'll learn guitar. But then

he was struck by lightning and died. The funeral was really sad.

Everyone cried and their mom was even sad because the doorknob wasn't supposed to fall off after the man had his tooth pulled by the string attached to the doorknob that was slammed. The unfortunate affect was fatal.

Never tell this story to the dentist. They will have Peter Pan's head.

But if you tell it to the waiter at your local seafood restaurant, you will be sure to get a visit to the treasure chest. Maybe you will get a pirate shaped tattoo

A ~~pritate~~ pirate with dirty underwear, that is... but why buy underwear if you can't show anyone?

Yeah, why buy underwear if you can't show anyone? Cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius, cornelius.

Was in the ar-meee la la la la la laaaaaa

But then I woke from this horrible dream and decided that I would never eat PIZZA again!

Here are a few hints that might help
1. Tattoo?
2. Who is most likely to misspell "pirate"?
3. Who is stupid enough to write "Cornelius" over and over again?

I'm really glad I have awesome friends who write stupid stories and are still my friends after 5 years of this stuff. You guys rock.

4'33

2007-08-29T15:16:00.000-04:00

you know you're a geek when...

2007-08-24T18:47:00.000-04:00

you use Google Maps in your dreams.

random montage

2007-08-16T22:55:00.000-04:00

I made this random montage with the new iMovie! I love it, the only downfall is the lack of audio editing abilities, which I can get over because of the new movie clipping features. The footage is from many random things in the past 3 years, including choir tour, seaworld, New Brunswick, and Nathan Martin. Enjoy!

it's raining in Baltimore..

2007-08-09T22:27:00.000-04:00

it's kind of creepy to be sitting around people who are all sleeping, sitting down. I'm sitting at the Buffalo airport, and have been sitting, for the last 6 hours.

My flight was supposed to leave at 5:55pm, it now reads as "unknown departure time". My hope is that I am out of here by tomorrow morning, but I'm not sure. Here are some of the adventure's I've had so far:

I lost my cell phone antenna. I was cleaning one of the bathrooms (so that I could use it), and my mom called me. I quickly answered the phone, not thinking of how awkward that would be for everyone else in the bathroom. Just imagine some of their thoughts "how awkward, there's a stranger speaking in Spanish in the stall next to me." I was in the handicapped stall also, because it was the only one that wasn't too nasty. I usually pick the handicapped stall because its more comfortable, and usually cleaner. One time, a handicapped person came and knocked on the door.... I quickly finished and left, very ashamed. So I'm on the phone with my mom, and I tell her my flight is delayed and I don't know when I'll be home. I hang up, and my cell phone antenna falls into the toilet. I quickly go to get it, but my motion sets off the flush. bye bye, cell phone antenna.

I've met a LOT of awesome people, made some friends, told some jokes, and had fun. I also realized that you can go through the security check as many times as you want, so I've gone through it a couple times already, although they are starting to be suspicious of me. They have this cool machine that shoots air at you, and it's pretty fun, but it tickles.

I also realized that Wi-Fi at airports is expensive ($7), but so worth it when you're stuck for over 2 hours. I think I might watch some Brian Regan soon.

It's not every day I have the chance to hang out with strangers and get to know them well, so, I'm done blogging. If anyone has a spare cell phone antenna, please let me know!

UPDATE: my flight left at 1am, only 9 hours after I arrived at the airport.

new look

2007-08-04T00:56:00.000-04:00

every summer I get sick of my blog design, so I try to make it better. I like what I have so far, but I might still tweak things around.

There are a couple of things I am going to change along with the design. I want to improve the content, hopefully talk about more things that interest me such as my new adventures in youth ministry, graphic design, photography, and useful links that I find around.

I have lots of ideas for "segments" I want to try out, and here is my first new idea for a segment.... This is a new segment I like to call...

Self-Help Books to Motivate Your Life, by Felix Lam - Part 1.

2007-07-29T22:40:00.001-04:00

Lifted

2007-07-17T12:31:00.000-04:00

new theory

Yes, I'm a bit sad, my Radom and Poznan visitors didn't leave a comment. So I'm working with a new theory of why people actually visit my blog.... here it is:

Instead of coming to my blog because of the main attraction, which would be me, people stumble upon this blog because.....

A. They did a Google search for "transformers who's the boss pirates labyrinth" and the number one result was... this blog. Try it, I'm not joking.

B. Secret government agents from around the world are watching Bolivians. They want to know what we eat, where we sleep, and how we waste our time on the Internet.

C. There are 544 women who have crushes on me from around the world, and they want to remain anonymous. I respect that.

and finally...

D. Bears.

2007-07-13T11:18:00.001-04:00

Shout out to Poland

In a record breaking month, this blog has received two visits from Poland! In honour of my Polish readers, I want to give some shout-outs to all the people that have visited this blog in the past month.... here it goes

Radom and Poznan, I don't know much about you, but Poland ROCKS! Too bad you lost to Argentina last night in the U-20 World Cup... maybe next year? Keep Rockin' for Poland.

Budapest, you are defiantly the best city in Hungary. One time I voted for a bridge being named in your country. I learned that bridge in Hungarian is "hid".

Watford & Thames Ditton, thanks for visiting from the UK. I live on Edinburgh drive, is that a city in the UK somewhere? I like to pretend that it is.

Seinajoki, Finland! One visit? Is that all you have? Learn to be more committed.

Courbevoie and Lillie, France - I know you are probably just Redeemer students stranded in France, but still, I appreciate you. And I also am reminded of when you stole the Pope from Italy, that was a nice trick.

Spain, you rock. Even though your visiting place is unknown, you are known in my heart. In a few words I like to call "Spanish", let me say to you "Muy Bien", which means, "donkey's knife tennis action".

Milan, Italy - represent.

Greece, no visits?? What's up with that? Seriously, get a move on it Greece.

Cuiaba, Brasil. One time I was in a bus that went through you, and I liked it. Keep being nice to buses.

Dear The States, more specifically, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Kansas, Iowa, Minnesota, Michigan, Florida, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, and Virginia, thank you for your visit. I hope soon the other states will follow in your example, and start reading this blog as well. Good work, the States.

Finally, Canada.

Special Shout out to Hamilton (the Hammer, Hammertown, Hammerville, The Big Stinky City, Home of the Bulldog) ranking in at 340 visits!

Honorable mention to Unknown, for coming in at 229.

Mississauga comes in third with 93 visits (shout out to Felix Lam)

Toronto, Etobicoke, Burlington, and London all come in above 10 visits.

AND FINALLY, a super-special shout out to the under 10 visits from Canada...

Winnipeg, my friend is Jason Legg
Concord, you sound like a Butlers name
Welland, you didn't even know 'er!!
Kitchiner, you were a mean general
Waterloo, thanks for dropping by
Salmon Arm, what the crap? I have a friend in Salmon Arm?
Langley, well done my young padewan
Forest, who are you?
Thunder Bay, greetings tree-planters
Chatham, Yo my Moelker friends!
St. Catherines, you have many grapes, I commend you
Fort Erie, your bridge sucks
Vernon, you sound like an Uncle
Ottawa, Stephen Harper, thanks for dropping by
Vancouver, s'up Norma
Lethbridge, I got nothing
Calgary, your airport is boring
Edmonton, I don't know what your airport is like.
Kamploops, woot woot Nikki!
Windsor, you scare me
Niagara Falls, you make me claustrophobic
Scarborough, you are fun to spell
Grand Praire, grand indeed... grand indeed.
Victoria, Yo Fennema's!
Kingston, you owe me $10
Owen Sound, peace and love to you
Montreal, wazo my fren
and...

Oshawa, you know what they say, the last will be first, so good job.

Thanks for visiting this blog, I promise my next post will be more interesting. If you could please leave a comment with your name and city, that would be AWESOME (that's right I'm talking to you Hungarians)

2007-07-11T16:32:00.001-04:00

Ever wonder what you will look like in 50 years?

I sure don't, not after looking at this picture.

It's like one of those machines that tells you what you will look like, except instead of a machine, I'm just sitting with my dad and grandfather. If anyone else has pictures of their "aging", I say we all blog them!!

2007-07-06T15:37:00.000-04:00

Canada Day pics

Here are some pictures I took on Canada Day. Enjoy!

2007-06-27T09:18:00.000-04:00

Goooooooooooooolaso de Bolivia!

Venezuela 2 - Bolivia 2. Not bad for playing against the host team...

And here is a closer look at the goal by Arce!

2007-06-25T15:37:00.001-04:00

Proof that I'm not crazy

Many times people have told me that they don't believe my stories. This bugs me and makes me feel kind of sorry for them, for not imagining a world as exciting as the one I have lived in. So here's the deal, I'll give you some third party evidence, with some pretty "funny and crazy" things, that are really well, normal and routine to me.

1. Exploding things - "This year government officials and environmental groups have gone all out to try to convince people not to burn or explode things. Public service announcements in La Paz featured rap singers beckoning people, “don’t burn, don’t burn.” Here in Cochabamba a small group of people dressed up as fires and walked around aiming to spread the “don’t burn” message."

2. Dancing Demons - "The carnival is celebrated in a parade of over 50 dance groups that dance, play and sing over a 5 km long course. The groups dress up as demons, Satans, Incas and Spanish conquerors. The parade is celebrated every day from morning until late night (18 hours a day)."

3. Country-wide Water Fight - this is just a video example of the week-long water fight we have every February. You can also read about it here . Here is a quote from that page: "I have never seen such a crazy, pissed up, toilet of a city, week long party in all my life. In between the devil masks and marching bands, chaotic water fights and sneaking under bleachers to avoid paying for seats..."

4. My country for a horse! - "Melgarejo was said to have given a vast amount of land to Brazil for what he described as a magnificent white horse. The stories tell that a Brazilian minister presented Melgarejo with a white horse and other gifts, and to show his appreciation Melgarejo pulled out a map of Bolivia, traced the horse's hoof and gave that land (a very disputed land by the Bolivian Indians) away to the Brazilian government." I am not sure if the story is true or not... but it sounds like something only a Bolivian would do.

5. My great-great-great grandfather - enough said.

2007-06-20T22:41:00.001-04:00

random thoughts by Mikey

1. Some friends of mine started going to a Chiropractor - now I feel like I'm living a less fulfilling life, full of spine problems and un-even legs.

2. I've been thinking a lot about obedience and humility, and what it would mean to serve Christ even to death. It's hard to follow Jesus.

3. The Copa America starts next week! For those of you who don't know what that is (shame on you!), it's the second biggest event next to the World Cup. All of the South American teams and a few invited North American teams play in a really fun soccer tournament. I'm excited! If you want to catch a game with me, I will be planning to watch as many as I can.

4. I used to sell hamster food when I was in grade 6.

5. I've eaten spaghetti 4 times this week.

6. Pirates 3 - sucks. Spiderman 3 - tasty. Oceans 13 - good.

7. I bought Season 2 of Corner Gas. I'm excited. You can watch seasons 3 and 4 online, at CTV.CA

8. Blog categories that I read every day: MAC, 5. People, 3. It's sad that I care more about Apple technology than I do about people lives... but sadly, it's more interesting.

9. On that note, the iPhone is out in NINE DAYS! Not that I will buy one, they won't even be available in Canada, but I am excited to read blogs about it.

10. I went to see Toronto FC this past Sunday, and it was an amazing experience. We won 4-0 against the MLS top team FC Dallas. My dream is that someday soccer will take over Canada and all other sports will be forgotten (sorry felix).

2007-06-14T13:53:00.001-04:00

Bolivia makes the Silver Screen

In the past year, Bolivia has a lot of problems involving human trafficking, sexual rights, and much political unrest. If you want to read more about these issues (and I do recommend that you do), there is a new ENGLISH online publication from Bolivia called Ukhampacha Bolivia. It means "This is Bolivia" in Aymara, one of our native languages (that I don't speak, but I can count to 10 in).

Now, from a more consumerist North American perspective, Bolivia has also made the trailer for the new TRANSFORMERS movie. How exciting is that? If you read carefully, the location where one of the Transformers is bought is "Bolivia's Finest Quality Select Used Cars - We Finance Anyone!" That sounds like Bolivia.

It's quite funny because most of the cars in Bolivia are from Japan, and if you have ever been to Japan, you know that they drive on the other side of the road. So, Bolivians, who always like going for deals, buy OLD used Japanese cars and bring them on boats to Chile. They arrive all backwards, since they were made for driving in Japan. So, some mechanics just take the steering wheel and just move it to the other side, while leaving everything else on the other side. It's quite funny to be driving in the passengers side, because you have all the speed, gas, and kilometer information in front of you (although sometime they turn it into a big clock, because the driver can't see all that stuff anyway, or sometimes they just make it a big photo frame and put pictures of their kids there). This is why most of the cars in Bolivia are called Transformers!

2007-06-05T11:01:00.000-04:00

Ode to Mikey's

This is for all the Mikey's in the world who have had to justify their name.

My name is not Michael, I'll always be Mikey
You might tell me, "that's not mature", and
"you're not a child anymore!"
but I don't care, your name sucks.
You know who you are.

You might say, "its not professional", or
"you need to grow up someday!", but,
you're stupid, and that's why you say that.

My name is Mikey
it's not Michael, or Mike,
it's not Mike E. or Mickey,
and I'm definitely not a mouse.

I don't "like it", and
I hate Life cereal.

2007-05-25T11:12:00.000-04:00

Birthday Party Magician

I love watching David Copperfield. He was huge in Bolivia. Not like physically huge, he was probably the same size everywhere, but I mean that everyone knew who he was. I remember watching him make a SPACE SHUTTLE disappear one time, and I was so amazed. That's when my career as a magician started. My parents encouraged me and got me a magic set for Christmas one year, I mean... Santa got it for me.

My sister had this one friend, Svenja, who was from.. Russia, I think. Her dad worked for some kind of GPS technology thing, I think he was a spy. One time I met a spy in Hartland, NB. He had a grenade in his office, and really cool business cards. He also used to spy on the KGB on behalf of Canada- and he was awesome and had a cool VHS tape of Richard Simmons called Disco Sweat. I definitely took advantage of working out to awesome disco music.

One year I decided to entertain all of my sister's friends for her birthday party. I practiced all of my awesome tricks and I was her birthday party magician. I was probably 13 or 14, and I had an awesome crowd of about 15 or so... 8 year old girls. One of my favorite tricks was this red ball that I had on a string, and the ball would go down the string and I could make it stop with my MIND! (not really, but I can't tell you how I did it, or else it wouldn't be magic).

I also had a trick where I would guess the card that you picked out.

My favorite trick was where I would say "Now, I will saw one of you in half, with my bare hands!" Then I would get a volunteer to come lie down on the table. Instead of sawing them in half (which I probably could do, I'm very strong and my fingers are sharp) I would say, "just kidding, everyone tickle her/him!" And then everyone would go crazy tickling the person who was supposedly going to be sawed in half.

I was SO good at being an awesome magician, (and this is where Svenja comes into the story) that Svenja asked me to come be a magician for her birthday as well. She had a little sister too, who back then was like 4 years old, but now is probably 15 or something crazy like that. They also had a bunch of turtles in their back yards. Maybe they were German... yeah... I think they were German.

My career as a magician was short, but I think I could have made it big. I think my problem isn't skill, it's commitment. I never like one thing enough to pursue it - I get distracted and do something else.

Next blog will be about the time I had a Hamster business in grade 6.

2007-05-24T15:25:00.000-04:00

2007-05-21T00:22:00.000-04:00

things I miss & things I like

I miss... yelling STOP!!! to make buses stop for me.
but I like... pulling the little yellow string and having them magically stop without any yelling.

I miss... all you can eat MEAT
but I like... Wendy's and McDonald's

I miss.. the 90 year old man who picked up our garbage with his horse
but I like... recycling

I miss... buying fireworks and explosives at the corner store, and making things blow up all the time
but I like... not worrying about death

I miss... bargaining with street vendors
but I like... knowing that my food won't poison me

I miss... living in the rain forest and having awesome animals like parrots and toucan's and monkey's, oh my!
but I like... squirrels - they are awesome.

I miss... driving and thinking I am going to die every 5 seconds
but, I can reminisce whenever I drive with lmo.

It's been almost 4 years since I've been home, and I really miss it.

2007-05-13T18:06:00.000-04:00

comic relief

2007-05-03T10:57:00.000-04:00

I loh yor teeths

I was eating a peanut butter sandwich and my mouth started hurting. I realized that one of my wisdom teeth has started rebelling against my jaw. This is no good. I feel like I constantly have food stuck in my teeth, but really I just have a tooth stuck in my teeth.

PARACHUTE!
This is where everyone else who has had worse teeth experiences, come, cut me off at the pass, and tell me about how they had 50 wisdom teeth that were all impacted and had to have double root canals and there was so much blood that they could have made a blood river.

Sometimes I feel like blogging is useless. Here is the thought process I generally go through:

1. I've been thinking about a topic for a while... and I have some interesting thoughts... but no one will care
2. I forgot whatever I was thinking about
3. my mouth is hurting, maybe i'll post about that
4. no one will care anyway...
5. oh well, at least it's something to keep people coming back to this black hole of a blog.
6. and now im posting it...

I think I will take a different approach to blogging - instead of ME picking what I blog about, I will let YOU pick what I blog about
Here are the options:

1. what it's like to work for a church
2. how felix and I met
3. a movie review
4. a crazy bolivian story
5. a poem about my childhood
6. you pick your own topic

I feel like I've sold my blog to consumerism.

2007-04-17T13:16:00.000-04:00

Pluto and Dip friggin' dots

I was in DC recently, and there are two things that stuck out to me.

1. Pluto has been removed from the "exploring the planets" exhibit at the Air and Space Museum

2. I saw a Dippin' Dots stand outside of the natural history museum... I ran toward it.. and I promptly asked for some Dippin' goodness. To which I heard "sorry, we don't sell Dippin' Dots anymore."

"What? But you're a Dippin' Dots Ice Cream booth!"

And that is the reality of my life.

So, once again, I'm dippin-less and now im pluto-less.

2007-03-22T13:43:00.000-04:00

dippin' dots

I have been craving some Dippin' Dots ice cream lately - and so I did some research on how I can get some of that goodness in me. After all... it IS the

Ice Cream of the Future!

After some frustrating internet research that led only to find 1446 locations in the US.. I decided to take a different route.

So..

I called their offices

in Calgary.

"Hello, can you tell me all the locations for 'Dippin' Dots' in Ontario?"

"I have a list I can email you if you would like"

"mmmm... yess... perfect.. I'll get you Gadget!"

Actually, I didn't say the Gadget part... but I thought it might be fitting somewhat.

then I waited a few minutes..

and that turned into waiting a few hours...

which turned into a few days...

so I emailed them...

"Hi, I called you a few days ago.. asking for the locations of the 'Dippin' Dots' in Ontario, could you please email those to me? Thank You!"

that was 3 days ago. I haven't not heard anything!

sorry, that was a triple negative or something, just for fun.

Now I sit here, with an empty stomach, no friggin' dots to be found... and I'm sad.

So if you know of any Dippin' Dots in the area, please let me know, and I will treat you to some ... ICE CREAM OF THE FUTURE!!!

the end.

2007-03-04T12:49:00.000-05:00

Ernie

I found this while blogstalking

And, interestingly enough, my first word was "ernie" (that's what I called my brother, his name is nick).

You Are Ernie

Playful and childlike, you are everyone's favorite friend - even if your goofy antics get annoying at times.

You are usually feeling: Amused - you are very easily entertained

You are famous for: Always making people smile. From your silly songs to your wild pranks, you keep things fun.

How you live your life: With ease. Life is only difficult when your friends won't play with you!

The Sesame Street Personality Quiz

2007-02-28T14:24:00.000-05:00

ping pong predestination

mikey: soon I will be a burlingtonian - so ill come visit you often

felix:i can't wait buddy

mikey: yeah man - we'll ping pong it up

felix: sounds good... i can beat you even with a broken shoulder

mikey: i bet you I can beat you just using spaghetti noodles instead of a raquet

felix: i can beat you with my mind... from my house here if we played at redeemer

mikey: i can beat you before you even use your mind, ive pre-emptively striked on the game

felix: as soon as i was born, you were immediately beaten at pin pong for the rest of your life

mikey: even before you were born, i knew the plans I had for you to loose at ping pong
(I think that verse is in the Bible)

felix: i guess you got me there... can't argue with the bible

mikey: i think im gonna blog this

2007-02-27T16:43:00.000-05:00

holy jenga!

2007-02-17T12:07:00.000-05:00

wound up about the truth

Recently I was browsing through Chapters and in between "New & Hot Fiction", "Dieting in 2007" and "Books to give your Valentine", I saw an interesting category that seemed out of place, "God & Science". I jokingly remarked to Duermaster, "hah, little do they know that the two can't coexist!"

This display had books from both sides of the argument, and was showcasing a new book called "The God Delusion". The video above is an interview with the author of said book. It's scary how compelling his arguments are..

This is my favorite quote:

"..I don't think you would wish to live in a society that lived a lie. I think you would rather live in a society which had a truthful view of the real world even if it led to less happiness.."

Amen, Dr. Dawkins.

2007-02-08T15:26:00.000-05:00

free gas? anyone?

--Hello! Do you mind if I pay for your gas today?

-umm.. what?

--Pay for your gas! I am handing out money for gas, do you want some?

-*weird stare*

--It's a way of showing people that we care about them, by being generous. So.. I'm gonna give you two $10 gas coupons. You can use one for yourself and if you want, give the other away to someone else to continue giving to the community.

-... why are you doing this?

--Because we care about Burlington

-And thats it??

--yeah..

-So I don't have to sign up for anything? Or pay for something?

--nope. just take the money.

-Are you sure?

--Yeah, go right ahead.

-Thanks... thanks a lot.

It's not an exact quote, but it resembles many conversations that I have had in the past 2 weeks. As Living Mosaic Church prepares for its "grand opening" this Sunday, we have been doing intentional acts of kindness as a church around the community. We have given people money for Tim Hortons, free Voortman cookies, and (probably the best in my eyes) free gas! I have received SO many weird looks, confusion, and the best of all, I have been blessed by experiencing generosity. It's amazing what just giving things away can do, even if I didn't buy it to begin with.

I know what many of you are probably thinking, "what? a church giving away stuff for free? Calvin would be rolling in his grave!". It's true, Calvin is dead, but Jesus isn't! It's true, we are causing controversy, but what better way to raise eyebrows than by being kind and generous? We might not be feeding 5,000 or even 3,000, but we are certainly going to try to care for our community in simple and easy ways.

2007-01-28T14:28:00.000-05:00

In the News...

Check it out - we made the news!

Church Offers Food for Thought (courtesy of the Hamilton Spectator)

Church Members to Promote Acts of Kindness (courtesy of the Burlington Post)

It's always nice to see things that you love being put in the news. I really hope people hear about what we are about, and that we truly want to be a community that "lives our faith".

I laughed when I heard our pastor, Leo, referred to as Rev. Leo. I think I will call him that from now on.. or maybe just the pastor formerly known as reverend Leo, and give him a cool symbol instead.

My favorite quote is:

Living Mosaic is part of the North America-wide Christian Reformed Church with 300,000 adherents in 1,000 churches, including some 77,000 Canadian adherents. A Christian sect whose chief theological underpinning is the Apostle's Creed, the church is looking to diversify beyond its Dutch Calvinist roots in the face of shrinking congregations, a problem plaguing many Protestant denominations.

I love it! It's about time they call the CRC a Dutch Calvinist shrinking sect. Right on, keep 'em coming! Sometimes I find it weird that I am a CRC pseudo-pastor - because I don't fill any of the stereotypes. But hey, I love all my dutchies, and their culture - they are just as important to our diversity as I am.

For more information, ask me, or go to www.livingmosaicchurch.com

Anyone who wants to come by for a visit, you are welcome to any time! (as long as its Sunday mornings at 9:30 for a light breakfast and a service at 10am)

2007-01-21T15:01:00.000-05:00

How many can YOU name?

2007-01-16T12:57:00.000-05:00

we jammin'

I woke up with the Bob Marley song in my head... "We Jammin'".

I have no idea why, or where it came from.

We're Jammin' in the name of the Lord
...
We're jammin, we're jammin,
we're jammin, we're jammin,
I wanna jam with you.

We're jammin, we're jammin,
I hope you like jammin' too.

Maybe this is one of those songs that I sing for a while... and later on someone will say to me "do you know that song is about __________?" And the blank will be filled with things like pornography, marijuana, killing puppies, racial cleansing, satanic sacrificing, voodoo, or calvinism.

In other news...
Vonage is awesome. (and if anyone reading this blog is going to sign-up for vonage... let me know because I get 2 months free for every person I refer to this awesome service... ok, thats all my lame publicity for now)

The Evolving Church is a conference on .... the church (surprise). It's affordable ($79 early bird, before March 1), and the speakers this year include... Shane Claiborne, Jim Wallis, and Dr. Ron Sider. For any of you emergent enthusiasts, this might feed your rebel-souls.

I'm moving to Burlington! More to come later.

Living Mosaic is having its GRAND OPENING! Wahoo! For those of you who don't know, I am a ministry leader at Living Mosaic church, and after many months of praying, planning, and being a church, we are finally going to be launching into the community. Very exciting. If you would like to come, it is this Sunday, Janruary 21st at 10am at Trinity Christian School in Burlington (Appleby Line and Upper Middle road).

Here is a list of people that I would invite to come speak at our church:

5. N.T. Wright
4. Mr. T.
3. Jack Baur
2. Gary Larson
1. Stephen Colbert

Once a guy told me that he could build a light-saber if he had enough money, and that it really wasn't that hard to do. I still don't believe him.

2007-01-05T12:01:00.000-05:00

Fee

Felix is a great man.

So many things to say about Felix... but I will write a Limerick instead:

There once was a man named Felix
Crap, nothing rhymes with Felix
he is a great guy
so don't just cry
Because he is will make some cheelix.

Thanks Fee, for being such a great friend!
I have to let you know that you're my shining star... and you are second to none.

2006-12-17T23:20:00.000-05:00

Sometimes I wish I was 3

If a band goes on Sesame Street, my respect for them increases by 10 fold. Especially if they do a song with elmo.

2006-12-08T16:31:00.000-05:00

Consumeristmas

I would try to articulate my feelings about this topic, but I know of someone who did a better job, so I will let him speak.

Taken from The High Price of Materialsm by Tim Kasser.

"At this point in human history we have enough material resources to feed, clothe, shelter, and educate every living individual on Earth. Not only hat: we have at the same time the global capacity to enhance health care, fight major diseases, and considerably clean up the environment. That such resources exist is not merely a utopian fantasy, it is a reality about where there is little serious debate.

If we hold our eyes wide open we can see that the human community is instead dividing itself into two distinct worlds: a 'first' world filled with opulence, luxury, and meterial excess; and a 'third' world characterized by deprivation, poverty, and struggle.

This global reality exists, however, only because poeple, and I mean each one of us, can so readily be converted to the religions of consumerism and materialism. Indeed, such mass conversion seems already to have occurred. Vast numbers of us have been seduced into believing that having more wealth and material possessions is essential to the good life. We have swallowed the idea that, to be well, one first has to be well-off. And many of us, consciously or unconsciously, have learned to evaluate our own well-being and accomplishment not by looking inward at our spirit or integrity, but by looking outward at what we have and what we canbuy. Similarly, we have adopted a world view in which the worth and success of others is judged not by their apparent wisdom, kidness, or community contributions, but in terms of whether they possess the right clothes, the right car, and more generally, the right 'stuff'."

2006-11-28T17:22:00.000-05:00

Fake is the new Real

If you haven't seen Stephen Colbert, and you don't know what "truthiness" is.. well, that's your fault. Although I have much respect for people who choose not to watch television, I will not be one of those people, at least for now. I find television to be a great source of entertainment, learning, and relaxation.

However, I do hate commercials.

Some of my favorite shows include, Prison Break, The Colbert Report, The Office, 24, The Daily Show, and Blues Clues. And last night I couldn't go to sleep because I was thinking so much about three of these shows - The Colbert Repor(t), The Daily Show, and The Office. What makes them so popular? Why do people go NUTS over them? And most importantly, why do I resonate so much with them? After the address that Colbert did to the President at the Correspondents Dinner earlier this year, people started calling him the "last true journalist in America". That got me thinking, why would a fake news reporter actually be called the last TRUE news reporter? Isn't that a bit odd?

And what about "The Office"? The premise of the show is that it is a fake reality TV show done on the day-to-day happenings of an office in Scranton, PA. The show revolves around stolen staplers, office pranks, coffee-break meetings, office crushes, missing pencils, boring meetings, and once in a while, crazy dancing. And yet, what is it about this "fake" reality tv show that resonates so much with me?

Looking at other "reality" television shows like Survivor, Big Brother, the Amazing Race, and the like... I realized that they aren't really.... "reality". Sadly, they are just what the people who run the television stations tell us are "reality". But, in the end, they are just picked from a group of people, to make a mixture of politically correct groups of people who share the opinions that the producers would like them to share. Reality television is really nothing more than "Pretend" television. We are looking at a manufactured world, a world that television would like us to believe in, but that in fact is not real - its fake.

On the other hand, "fake" television is not afraid of reality. In fact, it mocks reality television and serious journalism, with a dose of truth that is not scared of what people might think. Colbert often goes into outrageous rants, yelling at congressmen, screaming at his guests, making a mockery of their ideas. But what he is really doing, is bringing to the forefront what most people are thinking, but not willing to ask.

In the same way, "The Office" is real because it is the reality that many people live in day-to-day. They work in offices, with missing staplers, with angry bosses that make your life miserable and that make you want to quit your job every day. This is the reality that people can relate to. Not being stuck in some kind of island with top models while you have to make a bathroom out of bamboo and jaguar bones.

THANK YOU "The Office", Stephen Colbert, and Jon Stewart. You bring me much joy and laughter.

2006-11-09T10:57:00.000-05:00

Fond Memories at Mt. Baker

click here to see full size

2006-11-08T19:16:00.000-05:00

Indian Thriller

I found this on my friend Kendra's blog and I couldn't not put it on mine... (wow, I think I just used a double negative)

2006-11-07T09:32:00.000-05:00

sfaeL elpaM oG

That is what happens when you write "Go Maple Leafs" on your own face, using a mirror.

2006-10-24T11:13:00.000-04:00

Tour of Bolivia part 1

Awatinas

This video is classic Bolivian music. In fact - it is SO classic - that it is sung in an aboriginal language - which is the case for most traditional Bolivian music. I have no idea what they are saying, but its probably about beer and women - most songs are. This video was filmed in the Western part of Bolivia - and it features all of the greatest shots of the lower classes in their traditional garments.

Most videos will either show the poor side of Bolivia - or the rich side. I have never seen a video that shows both. It's probably because of the intense racism between classes. Lower class people beleive they have been opressed for centuries and that the upper class does not give them a chance to live well (which in turn results for an extremely high rate of laziness, and whining and protesting...etc). And the upper class has the idea that they worked their way into their class... and they deserve it - and if only the low class would work as hard as they did, the could have it to (so they keep making it hard for the low class to get jobs, and keep making their lives better and grabbing all the money). I know this is an over generalization, but its true for most of the country. Bolivia is a very torn country which very highly opposing extremes. And this video grasps one of them very well. In a way, its equivalent to the moose riding, hockey playing, maple syrup eating, american hating, red and white wearing Canadian. instead its the Llama riding, poncho wearing, Lake Titicaca swimming, american hating, coca-leaf chewing, pan flute playing, bowl-cut Bolivians.

So there is it everyone - a treasure from my culture. More to come later.

2006-10-13T00:30:00.000-04:00

The Felix & Mikey Show

2006-10-10T16:17:00.000-04:00

Proud to be Bolivian

It's about time Stephen Colbert mentions Bolivia.
I realize its in reference to drugs, but at least we get some mention...

2006-10-08T22:37:00.000-04:00

Dear Feliciano

1. Take the nearest book and look up page 18, line 4. What does it say...

"kind. He does not see Job and his situation at all. It is rather as"

2. Reach out your arm as far as you can. What do you touch?

A couple of latops, random peices of paper, hand cream, my cell phone, some dead batteries, ear plugs, and some M&M meat shops discount cards.

3. What is the latest thing you watched on TV?

Two episodes of Family Guy

4. Without looking, guess what time it is.

10:43.. and its really 10:41... close enough :)

5. Apart from the computer, what else do you hear?

The guy from our lady peace, and some tv in the background.

6. When were you last outside, and what did you do?

go to church

7. What did you look at before you started answering these questions.

Felix's blog.

8. What are you wearing?

pants, a hair net, duct tape shoes, a head band, an eye patch, some nachos in my hair, a couple of boyscout badges, a tiara, and some pet food is glued on my back.

9. Did you dream last night, if you did, then what was the dream about?

I dreamt that I was everyone reading my blog was really bored.

10. When was the last time you laughed?

In the simpsons - ned flanders was singing a song about Jospeh and the Technicolor coat... oh flanders!

11. What is on the wall in the room you sit in right now?

A picture of my great-grandparents, some art by Laura Meijer, some of john bowens photography, a dead spider, and some fake wooden panelling.

12. Have you seen anything strange lately?

Felix Lam.

13. What do you think of this challenge?

I wish it was funnier

14. What movie have you watched most recently?

Liar Liar. For some reason I found it way funier when i was younger.... like most things. Either my standards are getting higher, or I'm becoming a humour elitist.

15. If you became a multi-millionaire, what would you buy?

A rose for every woman on earth. ha, whatever, id buy lots of computer stuff, and some 40 LCD's to put in my car.

16. Tell something about yourself that others don't know.

I cry in movies

17. If you could change ONE thing in the world, without consideration to politics and feelings of guilt, what would it be?

Id make all fish have the ability to speak and tap dance.

18. Do you like dancing?

only when fish do it.

19. George Bush?

at least he's funny.

20-21.What would you name your children, boy and girl respectively?

Policarpio and Gumercinda
(very bolivian!)

22. Could you consider living abroad?

I do live abroad...

23. What would you like God to say to you when you arrive at the Pearly Gates?

"hey dude, I can recite all of the presidents of the US in under one second.... BAH!"

24. Four people you would like to answer these questions?

NOBODY - its too painful!

2006-09-19T16:54:00.000-04:00

CHEQUE THIS OUT

I was trying to decide what kind of cheque to get... because I am running out of cheques, and I thought to myself "man, its so hard to pick a good cheque! Should I go for the funny one, the business-like one, or just the plain BANK cheques?"

So, instead of going through all that work of deciding and dealing with my decicion for the next 50 or so payments I do with a cheque... I am starting a contest...

the...

The Decide Mikey's Personal Cheque Future Today Challenge

challenge!

or... TTDMPCFTCC for short.

Here are the contestants:

#1: The TD Friends of the Environment Foundation Cheque

so yeah, nothing TOO exciting, but if i get this one, $2 are donated to some environment thing. i like the design.

#2: Fireman

Yep - 2 women angels comforting a fireman. This says "im tough AND sensitive... and slightly heretical... but thats ok because its pretty".

#3:The Terrier

I know what you're thinking... could there BE a cuter dog than this? yes.

Howoever, I like the fact that it has head gear... you dont see many dogs with head things these days... oh what days are these...

#4: The Rabbi

Im pretty sure this is an exact depiction of what Jesus looked like. Nothing says "lets buy into consumerism" like Jesus holding little children.

I'm somewhat scared of that dove though, im pretty sure its going straight for that kids head, and dove's dont have mercy like Jesus does.

#5: Cookie Monster

C is for Cookie, and C is also for Cheques. This cookie eating monster has been an inspiration for me all of my life...

#6: The Maple Leafs

I might not be a huge hockey fan, but I do know one thing: no leafs are going to fall this Fall season, baby.

#7: Fernando

What does a frog playing a guitar, a frog driving a car, a frog standing on a flower, and a frog driving a motorcycle have in common? They call come in one package of cheques... oh yeah

Now that you've seen the cheques... here's how its gonna work:

Each person can submit their vote and reasons for such vote. The cheque with MOST VOTES will WIN - hands down. If there is a tie - Felix Lam gets to break the tie - dont ask why. The winning cheque of this contest will in fact become my new Personal Cheque for the next 50 cheques I will use.

Thanks for voting and making my chequebook a better place.

2006-09-03T19:10:00.000-04:00

post-redeemer disorder

I've spent the last 18 years of my life in Christian education. The thought of that just scares me. My brother always was proud of the fact that he was able to "leave the bubble" early and go into the "real world". I usually just shrug off those comments with thoughts such as "he doesn't know what he's missing.."

Lately though, I'm feeling a bit regretful of being in a bubble for so long - and now im working as a pastor... which makes me think - am I ever going to leave the Christian subculture?

I watched a movie last night called Saved (which I highly recommend) and it made me really dislike Christians (I think that was the point of the movie). By the end I was rooting for the smoking - drug doing - homosexual - pre-marital sex having "pagans" (which by the way, most people in the Bible were like).

And the movie had a good point - Christians have a hard time being "real" - because their culture breeds conformity, following rules blindly, and a very superficial sort of living - which I have lived most of my life.

My goal is to have more non-Christian friends than Christian friends. Not because its bad to have Christian friends, but if I'm not intentional about it, then it will never happen. After all, what is our job as Christians? right... to be a light to the world! I feel like most of the time I just expect people to see my light and come to me, begging for Christ, instead of me brining light into dark places and showing Christ.

So here's to being bringers of light, and going out and being intentional about it. Or, to make it easier, 3/4ths of my friends can become pagans, sounds like a plan?

and theres a new song of the week...

2006-08-21T15:49:00.000-04:00

Mikey's Song of the Week Part DOS

Remember when Nelly Furtado was normal and her albums didn't have names such as "loose"? She isnt the first female artist to change in this way....

Once upon a time, Shakira used to be one of my favorite musicians - before her hips did't lie, before laundry service, before whatever whenever, before she belly danced her way into North American fame - there was a time where she sang only in Spanish.

This weeks song is from exactly that time - back when Shakira played acoustic guitar, dressed more modestly, and even had red hair.

Inevitable is one of those words that acutally means the same in both english and spanish, kind of like "no" and "stress" and "poo-poo". This song reminds me of driving through the Bolivian Altiplano, visitng Inca ruins, spending time with my La Paz side of the family, and drinking the largest Coca Cola drink money could buy at Burger King - the very aptly named KING SIZE drink.

I will leave you with these translated words from the song:

"I don't sleep before 10 and only bathe on Sundays"

2006-08-18T14:05:00.000-04:00

my favorite frog

2006-08-09T14:40:00.000-04:00

Mikey's Song of the Week

This is a new segment! Mikey's Song of the Week! And here is the first installment:

A Dutch farm in southern Ontario might be an uncanny place to find the cutting edge Techno beats from the early 90's, but for DJ PJ, this is where he got his inspiration. Tracks such as Psalm 201, Enigma of Self, Paradox in Progress, and The Obviating Factor, are some of the highlights of his debut album, Surrealocity.

DJ PJ is a long retired techno singer/song-writter, but his tunes are still alive and beating in today's music world. I had the privaledge of digitally re-mastering his 1992 album, and so here it is, the song of the week..

Normal Insanity.

Let the first lines of this song inspire you this week:

"I saw my brain, pulsating, within a glass jar, on my brothers bedstand."

mikey arce

The Fringe Network

in honour of Felix

the things I say sometimes...

Eat more, quicker

experiments in mystery - part 1

my next blog will be...

in case you were wondering....

a peculiar resemblance

Darth Vader in Japan

I have been forgiven.... by Mastercard

small business loans in Bolivia

pollo postmoderno

Cook With Mikey!

online kettles

stories from my elevator

things I find hilarious

A Plea to Bolivians

Buek! an introduction

Wild Goose Chase

lol? not so much.

your mom!!

race

yes, I am a nerd

2.0

Googleing 101

sorry Bolivia, you don't get the iphone

best Colbert Report yet

lesters thoughts.gov/awesome

Vernon vs. Hamilton - round 1

Pato Aventuras

lesters thoughts.gov/awesome

deep thoughts

yummmm

tonight...

best albums ever, so far..

¿Que Hora Es?

it's picture time!

the headless snowman

Which one of Mikey's CRAZIEST stories would you like picture proof of?

new and old

unexpected vacation

vintage retro design

oh the things I say...

my fake band

picture telephone

the squirrel that lives in my walls

Surely We Can Change

time

my *other* blog

what's in your garbage?

knee!

being a youth pastor

it's software time

jr high movies?

"please don't consider me the axis of evil"

Evo Morales on The Daily Show

Self Help Books To Motivate Your Life Part Deux

one time in dorm 23.....

4'33

you know you're a geek when...

random montage

it's raining in Baltimore..

new look

Lifted

new theory

Shout out to Poland

Ever wonder what you will look like in 50 years?

Canada Day pics

Goooooooooooooolaso de Bolivia!

Proof that I'm not crazy

random thoughts by Mikey

Bolivia makes the Silver Screen

Ode to Mikey's

Birthday Party Magician

things I miss & things I like

comic relief

I loh yor teeths

Pluto and Dip friggin' dots

dippin' dots

my other blog