Surviving My Life

Paradigm Shift

My life is changing. I can feel it.

The direction is moving, and the reality of who I am and where I'm going seems to be more and more something uncertain.

For me, life has changed for the better. Past the old ways and habits. Past the old ideas. The preconceptions and notions of my final destinations.

Days like today - where I had one set of plans, and they were changed for the better inside of ten minutes.

The roofing project is over. As I type this, I'm sure my mother is driving my father crazy with packing as they prepare to go on vacation.

This week I'll be staying at their house. Watching the pets - again - and making sure nobody breaks in to steal the wooden panneling in the living room.

Even where I grew up, it's starting to look different.

I remember the garage my entire life being one of those ugly things that I thoght looked horrible. Part of the dislike (for everyone) was the roof. Patched in several places with shingles that far from matched the black of the previous job, the roof always stuck out like a sore thumb - and was something that everyone noticed.

Twenty-Three years after moving in, we've replaced the roof. Ripped off all the old shingles - only to reveal that our garage was being held together by Jesus and prayer.

The wood was brittle and much of it was only 1/4" thick in places. Two full weeks of work later, and every sheet of plywood has been ripped off and removed. New plywood was hammered into place, and the supporting structure has recieved several large 2x4's and 2x6's which have at least doubled the structural integrity of the roof.

The roof is done. New shingles, brown, span the entire expanse - new roof now merges into old roof seamlessly.

My house - my home - looks totally different.

Yes, I still refer to it as "home". I do live by myself - but I've found that I never say "I'm going home" when I leave somewhere to head to my apartment. I say "I'm going to my apartment". Curious.

In any case, life is moving on. I couldn't help but think about the old garage. How it was before. Leaky. Ugly. Smelly in some areas. Rotten boards in others.

With some time, and hard work, it was made new again.

It's not perfect - there's a visable ridge where the old roof meets the new - but it's better.

It actually looks like a battle scar if you look from the road at it.

Being the introspective person that I am, I started to draw references to this new endeavor as we worked on it. The old being changed into the new. The amount of work necessary to accomplish this - two weeks - and the undeniable fact that even after it's all said and done, some traces of what was still remain.

I've gone through a lot. I've healed. But I still carry those memories. Those unchangable facts of my life that I am incapable of erasing - but that remain.

Hard lessons learned.

As I look back and have seen everything. Who I am. Where I come from. What God has given me....

I'm forced to see the beauty in the tapestry of my life. How all of my problems, my sins, my speedbumps, and holes, have all been woven together to form a monument to the greatness of God.

He used so many things in my life - bad things - to build what I have today. It's astonishing.

My life is on a different road now. I no longer lie awake at night mourning the past.



I lie awake excited for the future.

posted by Jeremiah @ 17:09 1 comments

Meeting the Naitives

Well, what a great day. The sun was shining. The birds were chirping. I showed the new Italian Professor around town. I helped my dad shingle the roof.

Some random guy on the street tried to kill me.

That's right. He tried to kill me.

I was traveling down the highway (Route 12, to be exact) which was under construction. The speed limit changed to 40, at which point I dropped down to about 45. That's when the lane on the left started to merge with mine.

And that's also when "Mr. Harley" decided to attempt to pass me - on the left.

He wasn't there before. He was doing about 70. In said workzone. Instead of getting behind me - he tried to eek past me.

It didn't work.

His motorcyle had a side carriage on it - and it clipped the side of my car.

Of course, furious at this jokers inability to follow moving regulations, I got him to pull over - to see if there was any damage, and also to get his insurance if their was any.

I wasn't in the wrong he was.

But, Mr. Harley had other ideas.

He started swinging the moment I got out of my car. The first three punches got nothing but air. The last two punches were deflected by me (Still wondering what the heck is going on).

Seeing that punching me wasn't working, he decided to start pushing me around - all while screaming obsenities at me.

That's when the police officers from across the street saw this, and ran over. He ate some pavement and they hauled him away.

Thankfully, there wasn't any damage to my car - not even a scratch.

And I'm fine too.

My life....jeepers. It's never boring, that's for sure.

posted by Jeremiah @ 00:30 0 comments

Operators Manual.

I've decided I don't understand women.

I just don't.

1+1=2 for most of the time, then we come to another time where - for no reason at all - 1+1 = 9.

Go figure.



Fantastic.

posted by Jeremiah @ 22:13 2 comments

Say What?

I just had five professors in my office talking about the upcoming school year. All five are from different countries, and all five speak english about as well as I draw with my hands.

Right. Not well.

In any case, they were trying to talk to each other about what's going on for this school year - but there was a problem. 

They couldn't understand each other. So I had to translate.

That's right. I translated.

No, I don't know any foreign languages.

No, I haven't learned anything new.

I just listened (strained mostly) to hear what they were saying, figure out what it was, then re-say the same thing again - only more clearly.

Great. They teach 23 languages here, and the guy from Utica that only speaks English and nothing else has to translate for the staff full of PH D's so that they can get work done.

Nothing like a dose of irony.

posted by Jeremiah @ 13:36 0 comments

Let The Fun Begin.

For the last three weeks I've been left alone in my office to rummage through the equipment, re-arrange the lab, and, in general, just get stuff ready for the school year.

Professors are starting to show up - and now so are upperclassmen.

Some of them are students that work for me in this lab. Two of which are twenty two.

I feel weird being their "boss" when I'm only a few scad years older than they are.

I've been told that the first month whips past faster than you can blink when school starts - in two weeks.

I don't know what's going to happen next - but it should be interesting, to say the least.

posted by Jeremiah @ 07:56 0 comments