california, here we come!

i'm sad to admit it, but i've finally become a hopeless fan of teen tv drama. one of my lovely roommates happens to own fox's hit show 'the o.c.' on dvd. the other roommate (who is equally fantastic) started watching the third season in our living room, and i happened to occupy the other half of the room...now i can't stop watching. we've made it all the way through the first season, and are now working on the second. throughout high school and the beginning of college, i was thoroughly convinced that it was a mindless show completely focused on clothes, sex, and money.

(for all you nay-sayers, it definitely is still about clothes, sex, and money).

even after just watching the pilot, however, i noticed something remarkable about the sassy little teen soap opera. the idealistic public defender, sandy cohen, living in newport beach, california, with his epic-rich wife (and epic-proportioned eyebrows), takes in a troubled teenager from chino (from the epic-wrong side of the tracks), ryan atwood. it doesn't make sense...sandy cohen is just a 'good person.'

i had a conversation today about the roots of good and evil. we talked for a while about theological theories, etc., but we got to a core issue. 'good' action happens when someone doesn't hesitate to serve others, at their own inconvenience. 'evil' action happens when someone pays no mind to the needs of others (i.e., julie cooper-nichol). of course, this leaves a big neutral space, one that could be the genesis of both 'good' and 'evil' action. discuss.

to end my philosophical musings for this week, i leave you with a snippet of woodie guthrie's "christ for president:"

every year we waste enough//to feed the ones who starve
we build our civilization up//and we shoot it down with wars

on a completely different note, mrs. t's pierogies are incredible. add a little salsa and sour cream, and they get even better.

new troubles?

apparently, there has been a series of attacks on romanian residents of east belfast. and they continue. and, teenagers are getting involved.

at the same time, the loyalist paramilitary groups are decommissioning their weapons, hopefully beating their swords into plowshares.

[God] will judge between the nations and will settle disputes for many peoples.
they will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.
nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.
~isaiah 2:4, tniv

why do i go? this is why i go. keep turning swords into plowshares, and make sure the next generation knows how to do it.

reasons why

a lot of you have responded very positively upon hearing that i'm traveling to northern ireland for a year of volunteer service. however, i wouldn't blame you if you wondered exactly what help belfast needs. i certainly did.

this is certainly a part of it.

just as the u.s. is suffering through a market crash, so is northern ireland. what i see in that article from the belfast telegraph is that it's just getting worse...the job cuts are now coming in the public sector, too...and while many complain about the quality of service provided by northern irish public servants, they'll still be out of jobs, unable to provide for themselves, their families, and their futures.

that's where things like the east belfast mission step in. working to provide for the homes for the homeless, affordable clothing and furniture for the poor, work for the unemployed, and a community for folks to belong to.

so why am i going to belfast? as far as i know, i'm working with the youth program of the church, and the hosford house homeless shelter affiliated with the mission. to quote the mission's website:

"The local young people face enormous pressure from paramilitary groups and it is widely recognised by political and community organisations in the area that under-age drinking and drug misuse is also a significant problem, contributing in large part to crime and vandalism. Our vision is to offer these ‘at risk’ young people, especially teenagers who are struggling to find their way in life, the chance to be accepted for who they are and spend time in a safe place, while learning new skills that will bring about self-confidence and hope for the future."

any help i can provide with these programs will allow the leaders of the church to focus on bigger-picture goals...which is good for everyone.

love and peace or else,
andy

ps...for all of you that were fans of my long hair...it's gone :(.
pps...for all of you that are fans of hats...now i have a cool one...pictures forthcoming :).