Friday, November 28, 2008
in this installment, james meets up with a friend he hasn't seen in almost ten years.
I hadn't seen Jeff in about nine years. He intern at my high school church in Washington when he was 25 (two years younger than I am now!) and I hadn't seen him since. We emailed about once every quarter decade or so, but that's about it.
Then, thanks to the miracle of Facebook, we reunited digitally and I learned he was ALSO teaching English in Korea. So after a month of laziness and working out schedules, I finally braved the bus and train system the four hours south to Gwangju where he works.
He met me outside the bus station and two things were immediately clear. He was now 34 but hadn't aged a day, and we immediately picked up where we left off nine years before.
I love that.
Back immediately were the rapid fire theological discussions and ridicuolous anecdotes. You think I talk fast? You should see me with Jeff.
For all that the internet drives apart, there is a counter reaction in modern culture. If not for Facebook we probably would have never seen eachother again. It's very bizarre to think about, that in another decade a large portion of my friends would have simply disapeared by this point. I remember people my parents were friends with when I was younger and realize our family hasn't heard from them in years. And I wonder how my parents lives and friendships would be different if they'd had the technology we have today. And I wonder what my kids will have in the future.
Then, thanks to the miracle of Facebook, we reunited digitally and I learned he was ALSO teaching English in Korea. So after a month of laziness and working out schedules, I finally braved the bus and train system the four hours south to Gwangju where he works.
He met me outside the bus station and two things were immediately clear. He was now 34 but hadn't aged a day, and we immediately picked up where we left off nine years before.
I love that.
Back immediately were the rapid fire theological discussions and ridicuolous anecdotes. You think I talk fast? You should see me with Jeff.
For all that the internet drives apart, there is a counter reaction in modern culture. If not for Facebook we probably would have never seen eachother again. It's very bizarre to think about, that in another decade a large portion of my friends would have simply disapeared by this point. I remember people my parents were friends with when I was younger and realize our family hasn't heard from them in years. And I wonder how my parents lives and friendships would be different if they'd had the technology we have today. And I wonder what my kids will have in the future.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Tuesday, November 25, 2008
in this installment, james shares a movie trailer.
Hiya,
Word on the street is this independent film is quite incredible. Apparently it's a solid, artistic Western with a historical eye for period detail ... that has monsters in it. See as one of my goals it to make a series of historically valid Westerns with supernatural elements, I either love this guy or hate this guy in advance. Either way, watch for this flick, it's supposed to be fantastic:
The Burrowers
Word on the street is this independent film is quite incredible. Apparently it's a solid, artistic Western with a historical eye for period detail ... that has monsters in it. See as one of my goals it to make a series of historically valid Westerns with supernatural elements, I either love this guy or hate this guy in advance. Either way, watch for this flick, it's supposed to be fantastic:
The Burrowers
Monday, November 24, 2008
Friday, November 21, 2008
Tuesday, November 18, 2008
Thursday, November 13, 2008
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Saturday, November 1, 2008
in this installment, james eats a buttermilkboy
Hiya, back in South Korea now and absolutely loving the fact I can see my breath in the morning!
My last three days in Cambodia were spent in bed, not because I was horribly sick, but because I had a sore throat and could feel myself on the brink of something big. After two days in colder weather, though, I seem to be feeling MUCH better, so I think it was accumulated dehydration. I really have no idea how people survive in that climate.
Anyway, now that I'm back at my laptop there will be more videos coming, but at a slower rate than last month. I have a fairly heavy writing schedule now, and thus far it's working out well. The great thing about Gimpo is that everything is within a stone's throw away. So, within three city blocks (ok, I can't really throw that far) I have a jogging trail, movie theater, bowling alley, two coffee shops, and a mob of incredible restaurants, pharmacies, and convenience stores. So I plan on being on a strict schedule of exercise, eating, and writing ... which, thus far I've managed to keep for one day, then drank coffee too late and had insomnia and couldn't drag myself out of bed to go jogging.
Tomorrow, though, TOMORROW will be the real start date, right?
Good news is I am writing a TON ... one third of a short story and five pages of a screenplay in one day ... I'm really hoping I can keep up the flow. 2009 is too much of a watershed year career-wise not to have at least one finished screenplay to lead the assault.
In other news, I've decided that it's possible to fall in love with any country you visit, given the right amount of time and circumstance. For me, I fell in love with Cambodia on the taxi ride from the airport, which consisted of me juggling my large backpack and American fat on the back of a tiny motorbike as the driver wove through rush hour traffic while talking on his cell phone. Thailand took a bit longer, since my first impression was Bangkok. But a week on a secluded paradise beach tends to win you over. As for South Korea, on my first pass through I wasn't really won over. Kind of like a first date that doesn't really go horrible, but you didn't feel any sparks and are debating whether a second date it worth the time and money. For me, the lightning struck in the coffee shop yesterday, when I sat in a warm patch of sunlight next to the window and watched the afternoon rush push down the sidewalks with scarves across their faces.
Of course, it could just be it reminds me of Seattle ...
*Author's Note*
A Buttermilkboy is a brown sugar bun filled with butter sauce. Yeah, you heard me right.
My last three days in Cambodia were spent in bed, not because I was horribly sick, but because I had a sore throat and could feel myself on the brink of something big. After two days in colder weather, though, I seem to be feeling MUCH better, so I think it was accumulated dehydration. I really have no idea how people survive in that climate.
Anyway, now that I'm back at my laptop there will be more videos coming, but at a slower rate than last month. I have a fairly heavy writing schedule now, and thus far it's working out well. The great thing about Gimpo is that everything is within a stone's throw away. So, within three city blocks (ok, I can't really throw that far) I have a jogging trail, movie theater, bowling alley, two coffee shops, and a mob of incredible restaurants, pharmacies, and convenience stores. So I plan on being on a strict schedule of exercise, eating, and writing ... which, thus far I've managed to keep for one day, then drank coffee too late and had insomnia and couldn't drag myself out of bed to go jogging.
Tomorrow, though, TOMORROW will be the real start date, right?
Good news is I am writing a TON ... one third of a short story and five pages of a screenplay in one day ... I'm really hoping I can keep up the flow. 2009 is too much of a watershed year career-wise not to have at least one finished screenplay to lead the assault.
In other news, I've decided that it's possible to fall in love with any country you visit, given the right amount of time and circumstance. For me, I fell in love with Cambodia on the taxi ride from the airport, which consisted of me juggling my large backpack and American fat on the back of a tiny motorbike as the driver wove through rush hour traffic while talking on his cell phone. Thailand took a bit longer, since my first impression was Bangkok. But a week on a secluded paradise beach tends to win you over. As for South Korea, on my first pass through I wasn't really won over. Kind of like a first date that doesn't really go horrible, but you didn't feel any sparks and are debating whether a second date it worth the time and money. For me, the lightning struck in the coffee shop yesterday, when I sat in a warm patch of sunlight next to the window and watched the afternoon rush push down the sidewalks with scarves across their faces.
Of course, it could just be it reminds me of Seattle ...
*Author's Note*
A Buttermilkboy is a brown sugar bun filled with butter sauce. Yeah, you heard me right.
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