Okay, okay, I know it's been freakin' long since I put anything on here and most of you have probably given up on me. I'm sorry. But here's the latest.

Three weeks ago I flew back to the States for my friend Ryan's wedding in Colorado. It was weird coming to America not as my home, but being more like a visitor/tourist. But it was super good to be around my good friends Ryan and Tripp. We three lived together senior year of college. There are two of my closest friends and I am so grateful for them. I flew out of Seoul Wednesday night after school and arrived in Denver one hour later due to the 16 hour time difference. Wednesday night I stayed at Ryan's new house along with a couple of the other groomsmen. Thursday, all 7 or us groomsmen drove up to Breckenridge where Ryan's now wife's family has a freakin' sweet "cabin." We went by the grocery store and bought steak, potatoes, seafood, chips, and more and made a meal fit for a king. It was great. After that, there was a hot tub and Super Smash brothers on 64. I didn't really sleep at all that night. Possibly my favorite part of the time in Breck was getting up around 7 before everyone else (by that time I had given up on the idea of sleeping) and going outside as the sun was just coming up. I took a lot of pictures of the sun shining on the mountain and had a good time reading my Bible (Psalm 88 was refreshing for me at that time). I'll post a pic or two of this. Friday, we drove the 2 hours back to Boulder, where the wedding was, and that evening had the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner. Tripp, my roommate for 3 and 1/2 years of college flew in from Chicago and him and I stuck together as we were the only two friends from Belmont there. After the rehearsal dinner there was a desert/wine get together at Ryan's house put on by a bunch of mothers. Tripp and I missed out on most of this, because we ended up getting into a great conversation in the car out on the street. It was a much needed and anticipated talk. Tripp is doing awesome! He's just on fire for God and the word. What's most exciting about it is where he's come from. It's been really encouraging for me to see the change that has happened in Him and how God has captured his heart. He's memorizing chapters of the Bible and is now considering becoming a pastor, things that I would have never imagined a year ago. Tripp and I have gone through some similar things with our thoughts on God and as far as being cynical and questioning God, so for me it was great to see. That conversation, coupled with an email from Shea and some other factors have really brought about some great changes in my outlook and faith. Mostly, grace has become evident in my life. God has been more real and the Bible is becoming more alive. I'm memorizing Romans 8 which reminds me of grace each day. I'll write more of what's going on later. But the past couple of weeks have been great.

Okay, what else is going on? Hmmm....I ate dog. Yup. Went out with all the teachers from my school, and I had heard that dog would be an option. I had said I wouldn't try it and wasn't planning on it. We get there and all the tables are prepared with chicken soup and some pork stuff (bosan?), except the principal's table, which had dog (supposedly it's really expensive and gives you stamina). So, being the foreigner and all, the vice principal and principal wanted to offer me some of this delicacy, and in the moment with everybody watching, coupled with the fact that it looked similar to any other meat, I gave in and tried a small piece. It was super tough and took at least 5 minutes to chew and swallow. And it didn't have much flavor either. I don't think I'll try it again, but the ceiling on my "Weirdest Things I've Eaten" list just got bumped way up.

A couple of weeks ago, I had probably my most exciting night in Korea so far. One of the Korean teachers at my school is a member at this music club in Seoul and she asked me if I'd like to go with her. So, I went up to Seoul with a few other friends of mine and we met her there. It was so much better than I had expected. It was a dimly lit room with comfy couches and tables spread across it, a bar, and up front a pretty nice drum set, a piano, and a plethora of guitars. And the only other people there were some of Eun Son's (my co-teacher) friends. There are no employees, just the members who can just go up and get the drinks or food that they want. And we could just go up and play anytime we wanted. Super relaxed environment. It was awesome. I played a couple of my songs on piano and then got to play drums with Eun Son and my friend Chris. It was a blast. I told Eun Son that I'd love to come back as often as possible. So, this past Thursday, the club had a big party, and apparently the owner called Eun Son and told her to invite us back. A personal invitation from the owner! So me, Chris, Anlee, Amanda, and another co-teacher of mine, Eun Jeong, went up there. I got to play a few sets of my songs and also jam with some other people. It was a pretty fun night. There were a lot of people there, and some of them were really good musicians. It's really nice to have a place to play my music and also to play drums once and a while. I hope I can keep going there on a regular basis.

Probably the most encouraging thing that's happening here is the Bible study that a few friends and I started. My friends Anlee and Amanda (both American) suggested the idea, and so them and I and my friend Chris (from Vancouver) have been meeting every Tuesday for the past week at the girls' apartment. A couple of other people have since joined us. We are going through the book of Luke. But the most encouraging part has just been the fellowship and level of comfort and honesty we have developed with each other. I am really enjoying and benefiting from this time and these people in my life.

Well, I gotta get going to church. Heading up to a church in Seoul with Anlee and Amanda that I go to once and a while. Not my normal one here in Ansan. I'm excited for my lesson plans this next week. Should be pretty fun. Talking about adjectives of comparison-better, stronger, faster, best, longest, etc. I'll post a few pics here and maybe a video.

P.S. new music update-David Crowder Band's new CD rocks. These guys are so creative. And I'm still listening to Owl City like 4 times a day.