A Day Wasted?

Today(yesterday) was one of those days that you look back and ask “What did I do? Hours gone by and what?” My boss called this morning and said we’re not working today and maybe not tomorrow. I went to bed last night planning on working today. I mean when I’m working there’s little time for anything else so that’s all I do…W-O-R-K. No work and possibly a day or two before we do so. So I slept a little extra(been enjoying a nagging sinus infection/cold), got my laptop and drove 15min to use the internet for 45min, ate some lunch, and wondered what else I should be doing or needs done. Obviously I need to clean my place a bit, do some dishes, put up some clothes, vacuum, could read some, I’ve got time I could pray, journal, etc. Nothing grabs me so I go for a walk just to get some night fresh air hoping to avoid the mosquitoes but trust that’s not too likely. I risk it anyways. I’ve got cabin fever. I walk out on the dirt road trying to see where my feet are going with no other light than the glare of the well lit rigs off in the distance. I look to the sky and see half a trillion stars lighting up the sky. I see the dissection of the Milky Way galaxy splashed across the sky. A few shooting stars race through the sky burning up as they enter our atmosphere. I find a place to stop and just look up at the night sky. “What am I doing?”, I ask as to also imply the question where am I headed? “Are You there God? What did I miss today? Was my day, my existence here on earth today, simply wasted?” I peer into the night sky wondering. I think of how fast the earth rotates yet as I lay here on this concrete construction road block it looks completely motionless but I know otherwise. The cool crisp light breeze and occasional mosquito, aside from the hum of the rigs in the distance and the inevitable work being done there, seem to be all that’s moving. It’s peaceful and perplexing. So much stillness yet I know that the world is happening at an astounding rate and God is still moving with or without me. The question I ask then is did I join Him in some way? Did I walk with Him, pray for His people, miss opportunities to be love, light, grace, mercy, truth, peace, to someone? How does He care for me? Why does He despite our neglect?

God is all powerful, all knowing, gracious, just, righteous, Yahweh, the Creator…I wonder if we in our finite minds just believe that we are the only ones God created? I mean there are galaxies upon galaxies that go beyond where we can see. Would it be beyond God or like God to have us think we are the only ones and yet there are others? Other solar systems that work like ours and people who think they are the only ones that exist and have yet to discover anyone else or would He just out of sheer greatness continue to push and expand the vastness of His creation and watch man try to put it in to an algebraic equation for life? He continues to say I can’t be measured. I have no end but keep seeking it and all you’ll continue to find is Me. Keep seeking you’ll find Me. The day wasted? I’m still here. Keep seeking and you’ll find Me. Wonder what to do? Keep seeking Me. Come join Me. I’m still here. Obedience is what I want not sacrifice. If sacrifice is required then ok but I want obedience no matter what.

James 4:8 “Come near to God and He will come near to you.”

Until Dukey Drops Again….Much Love….

Days off & Paintball

Whewwwwww...last time I posted I was getting ready to do some work and work we did. Twelve days later I'm so ready for a day off after doing 12-14hr shifts of some pretty physical work that should have me in pretty decent shape in a little while. My body hadn't really recovered from the daily work out of which I wasn't really used to and I picked up a sinus infection of some sort. Good times. I think a little rest and I'll be over it though. My body just has to adjust to the routine a bit. I think I go back to work Wednesday.
So mom is away in Texas for a Mary Kay seminar, of which she is being presented with keys to her new Pontiac G6, so I decided to come visit dad. Today after church we went and played some paintball with several of the guys from church. It was my first time to play. I've wanted to many many times and finally we did. So the pics included were after the battles. This nice jewel on my neck happened after my dad and I who were on opposite teams both got hit. We stood up and were talking to each other in the paintball arena and POP! POP! My dad gets hit in the back and I get hit in the neck. One of the guys on his team(John age: 10 or 11) shot him and shot me in the neck from about 15ft away. He claims he was trying to shoot me because he didn't know if I was out. I don't know but not very often do you have guys on opposing teams just havin' a chat in the middle of a paintball match. Sorry not buyin' it. He saw bodies and shot 'em. He was craving some action and I'll have to be honest it took a little self restraint to not give him some of that action he might have been craving. I just don't think he would have enjoyed it. So I have the wound to prove it. Some how I also got hit in the left thigh 3 times all within 1inch of each other...really how does that happen? It made a rather large welt.
It doesn't hurt enough I won't do it again... =)




Was readin' the other day...Daniel 7 & 8...actually heard someone on the radio reading it then I went and read it a few times. Wondered what it would be like to have a dream like that and what I would do with it? Prayer, don't know what else. Talk with some other wise believers. Thats all I've got...check it out if you get a minute.



Kill Count:

Mice - 12

11yr old kid named John - almost 1 =) haha!


Well thats all for now...Until Dukey Drops Again...Much Love...

Do Work Son

Well the Mesa is finally opening. For those you who don't have a clue what that means...I didn't before I moved up here...it just means we can go to work...serious like. Instead of a job here or a job there. Most of our work is in the area called the Mesa and its been closed for a while. Its only open until sometime in November and we have 25-30% more hole to do this year in a shorter "drilling season" should be fun. We have 86 holes to drill. So its time to "Do Work Son!"
I did get my CDL permit today to drive the trucks. A little practice and I go take the skills test and I will be official...and get paid better. So thats good too.
Well off to pack my lunch and get some sleep.
Until Duke Drops Again....Much Love....

Wind River Mountians: Cirque of the Towers

On Saturday I went out for a day hike...my goal was Jackass Pass to get a look at Cirque of the Towers. It was 10mi in and 10 mi out obviously for those of you mathematically adept making it a 20mi hike from the trail head. =) 20miles in Kansas in less than 9 hours...please. NEWSFLASH this ain't Kansas. So I was gonna give it a shot and see how far I could make it before dark. I didn't know which would get me first the dark or the pain. I was up for the challenge to see what would happen. I arrived at the trail head at 11:45am and was cruisin' out at 8:15pm(gets dark around 9:30-10 here). Granted I was glad to be at the trail head because make no mistake I was in a little pain as you can see from the pics it was worth it. I wish I had more time to spend there than just a day but I'll be back. I'll try to put more of the pics on here when I get a chance but here are a few. Also I will have as many as I can on facebook in the next few days if you visit there. Anyway enjoy the beauty....I know they're small...not sure if I like 'em that way...if you click on them they'll enlarge....again enjoy.....

(#1)Temple and Haystack mountains (#2)Sundance and Warbonnet peaks
(#3) Arrowhead lake in the foreground, LtoR Temple, East Temple, Steeple & ???


(#1) Cirque of the Towers (#2) Cirque of the Towers & me (#3) Big Sandy River & peaks in the back


(#2) Big Sandy Lake & Temple mtn

(#1) Haystack mtn (#2) Big Sandy Lake






Until Dukey Drops Again....Much Love........

Living Dangerously..."Halal"

I was in Pinedale yesterday and I saw some little league baseball games going on so I stopped to watch. I quickly flashed back to when I played as a little guy. The object of the game was simple hit the ball and run or if you’re on defense catch it if the ball is hit and get the batter/baserunner out. To hit a home run was the ultimate glorious moment all of us dreamed about and when it happened life was as good as it could get. We ran the bases like there was no tomorrow. We’d swing the bat like we were going to hit the ball into tomorrow. Giving our all to win. To be victorious.

I remember the freedom and fun I had playing T-ball with my cousin Tyler. Our team was called the Tigers. We had orange shirts with black lettering and numbers. We’d play our hearts out and celebrate with victory like we won the world series or sob with the agony of defeat like we had just lost it…and then we would go to Dairy Queen or The Cardinal Drive-In and get some delicious ice cream and all would be right with the universe because that’s what you did after a baseball game. Then next week would do it all over again. Of course we would make sure we didn’t go to the pool on game days because as our parents and grandparents told us we would be tired and wouldn’t play well. It was simple. It was fun.

As I read the devotional (sitting on the log to the left in the pic with my feet in the river...a spot I may visit again if the log is still there)I was doing today these thoughts and memories were revisited as it talked about living dangerously. It said, In Dangerous Wonder, Michael Yaconelli writes, “Remember the thrill of thinking you could fly, the adventure of going places in your imagination, the joy and abandon of running and jumping and playing hard-without worrying about what might happen?”

Some of us remember what its like to be a child. Fearless wonder-some call it innocence. It’s the discovery of something new, the abandonment of our whole selves to living life. Somewhere along the path to adulthood, things change. We’re taught to “grow up.” Some behaviors just aren’t acceptable when you get older.

Stop crying. Quit goofing off. You’re laughing too loud. Sit still. Emotions are considered foolishness, and before you know it, we become the adult who doesn’t display passion about anything. We are lost.

I think we sell out with this dignified behavior. I think we miss the God-intended joy of living life.

One of the Hebrew words for praise is halal. It means to celebrate, to rave, and to act foolishly. Foolish actions are acceptable to God. He loves them; they’re heartfelt.

Life is meant to be enjoyed.

Read 2 Sam 6:12-15 This week lose a little dignity. Get lost in the moment without worry what other people think.

I loved it. I caught myself this week actually doing this. I was up in the Wind River Mountains running around taking pictures…literally running around. A guy on a motorcycle came over the hill and I stopped and acted like I was just hangin’ out. And as I’m doing now I laughed and thought what was I doing.

Why did I stop? Who cares. For a moment I was that little kid getting the picture of the lake, the eagle, the butterfly, the mountains and then for a moment that motorcycle made me think…I may look foolish. So I stopped. So what. I want people to know that I love my life and live it with passion. How boring is life if you don't enjoy it? I want to live life and enjoy every moment of it...even if I look foolish.

Kill count:

Mice-9(in my cabin)

Ground Squirell-1( death by vehicle)

Fish-0

Pronghorn Antelope-0 (1close call by vehicle with a mama and 2 little ones…not the way I want to do it)

This guy(Pronghorn Antelope) was in my "front yard" and stopped to pose for a pic(rarely do they stop) not 70yds from my house.















RANDOM WEBSITE: The Orion Project...if you haven't heard of it you should check it out. Its quite interesting. It deals with our energy sources and poses intriguing questions about our current ones.
http://www.theorionproject.org/en/


Until Dukey Drops Again.....Much Love.....

28hrs in a Day?

How many hours in a day are there? 24 you say. Most everyone would agree. This last week while I was in New Mexico there was someone who disagreed. We were drilling a water well for Shell this last 10 or 12 days and one of those days we crammed 28hours into 24. It was crazy. In the last 3 weeks I've been working there I've put in about 225hrs. Many nights I go to bed and sleep well. I'm tired but wow it is a very different tired than when I worked at TMP as the Dorm Coordinator for the boys dorm this last year. I feel really different. Its a good tired...maybe exhausted physically so I sleep well but I get up and go again. I'm not tired and draggin' like I found myself working at TMP. Some of it too is just adjusting to the work so its still fresh. I'm sure as the winter approaches and temperatures fall into the teens life on the drilling rig will be a little different...less sunshine. =p For now its been beautiful.
To work though has been a blessing. There have been some guys sitting at home waiting for work...kind of like I'm doing now but I'm sure I'll be back at it soon enough. I need to work on getting my CDL while I'm not out on the rig or somewhere else. We are supposed to be turned out to go crazy around July 15th as the big gas field that we will do a lot of drilling in is closed by the EPA and BLM. So now a little rest...pay bills...fun stuff like that. May have to run up to the Wind Rivers and mess around. I'll take my camera so I'll share a little of them on here.

RANDOM QUESTION: If you could open up a restaurant what would it be called and what kind of food would you serve?

Until Dukey Drops Again......Much Love.......

Burdening questions...

You ever wonder why? Wonder why it is that somethings are the way they are? Wonder why it is that God has given you what you have or placed you where you are in the company of the people you are with or allows you to see or experience the things you have? I think about these things sometimes.
These questions or similar ones I danced with once again a week or two ago. I was watching a movie documentary called "The Devil on Horseback". It is a violent story that saddens me for several reasons. Watch it and you will see why. I see the injustices and ask myself why suffering people have to suffer more. Its not right. Its not fair. Then to see people don't care. People who have the power to change things. The power to give the voiceless a voice and to draw attention to things that are not right and unethical.
Why does my heart break for single mothers who struggle to survive and meet her needs and the needs of her child with a food stamps as she tries to go to college? Why do the things of this world that seem impossible become the ones that burden my heart? The war on people groups based on ethnicity to cleanse the "lesser" people. And because these people or places don't have untapped raw capital of limited natural resources, fossil fuels or a growing economic base we look the other way and say that is too bad and we move on with our lives like we don't care.
Why do the weak or poor get kicked by the healthy and rich? Our selfishness and our pride will not let us say we are wrong and go against what we see. That then would make us look weak and we don't want to be like those that are perceived to be below us.
Does someone have to be a Christian if I am a Christian to help them? What if the person is Muslim or Hindu believing? Does that change my actions? It shouldn't. Is my effort to help someone or pray for someone less because they they haven't showered/bathed and stink? How about if they are Mexican, Iraqi, Black or Indian? Often times we feel comfortable taking care of our own, those we know and are comfortable with but is that the love we are taught by Christ to show? I don't think so.
Psalms 11:7 For the LORD is righteous, he loves justice; upright men will see his face.
Matthew 22:36-38"Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?" Jesus replied: " 'Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment."

So why is my heart burdened with these things and thoughts? To remind me? To help open my eyes? To help others eyes to be opened to their actions? I don't know but injustice is heavy. A burden the whole world, the wealthy world with opportunity needs to quit ignoring. My question is what will it take for the world to not just notice but to act? How many people have to be burned, shot, raped, murdered, starved or eliminated for senseless reasons? How many...

Until Dukey Drops Again.....Much Love........

Dirt and Dust

Its hot here or has been in the Santa Rosa area, about 2 hrs east of Albaquerque. Of course today we're not doing much. I'm not sure whats going on currently, like there is a code of secrecy but I know whats happened the last few days. We got out to the site north of Cuervo(means "crow"), NM in the red dirt, cactus and warm wind and started drilling. The first 30 feet we drilled was so messy. Dirt flying everywhere. Everything on me had a red dirt tint. We dug the first 30 feet to put the casing pipe in then we could begin to use pressure to blow out the dirt deeper in the ground with water and 350 pounds per sq inch of air pressure. We got to about 500 feet and the bit got plugged so we pulled all the drill pipe and cleaned the bit. The ground is hard here so its moving a bit slowly...even more slowly when I'm sitting at the computer updating this and not working. Overall I've found the first drilling interesting. You have to watch yourself and others at all times but it is interesting work.
Today...umm...well I guess we might not be working. I really don't know. Thats the code of secrecy I was talking about. Don't know why or when or if. Ask my boss you say...well I would but I don't know where he is/was. So for now I guess we may not be working today and I don't think we will work on Sunday. According to the little bit of nothing that I know I could very well be completely wrong. HA! So for now I'm not getting dirty but am collecting dust sitting around. I'm sure we'll find something just not sure what. Maybe we can run to Albaquerque?
I have really enjoyed working with Alberto and Tavo. They are fun guys. Both in their mid-upper thirties and are from Mexico. Tavo is single with a daughter(lives with mother) ad Alberto is married and has a couple kids. Tavo doesn't speak much english but still manages to make me laugh no less than Alberto. They're characters. They're good guys. Fun to work with.
We talk about languages...I'm currently teaching Alberto a little swahili and he teaches me spanish. Tavo is always saying "Don Chakaron"...ALWAYS! He sometimes is like a parrot...Don Chakaron...Don Chakaron...It never fails to make me laugh. I wish I could explain the story behind Don Chakaron.
We talk about imigration, Africa, where they are from in Mexico, food, what we don't know about work, our plans for the near future(2 or 3yrs), family, some about beliefs, weather, sports with Tavo, and you know a little this and that. Good times. I really hope to continue to get to know them better. Tavo is a good cook I guess and maybe soemtime next week he offered to cook when we get back to Pinedale. Sounds like a good time.
Well gotta run...boss just showed up.
Until Dukey Drops Again......Much Love........