Greek

Okay, so there are many things that a college graduate does, for those of us who have not found jobs yet we spend our days getting addicted to new television shows...my new addiction is a show called Greek.

Greek is on ABC Family and it portrays (which I have been told it portrays it quite accurately) the Greek system at a ficitional college in Ohio. Two fraternitys and one sorority are shown doing the expected drunken antics all under the umbrella of brotherhood/sisterhood respectively. 

Maybe it is because of my increasing desire to try college over again, but I couldn't help but draw parallels to this show and Taylor. Now, here me out none of these references have anything do with alcohol.

Each wing at Taylor obviously has it's own distinct reputation...when I lived on Third West we were known for wild antics, intramural dominence, and above all chasing each other around in a cloud of paranoia with a melon and gourd.

However, one thing that Greek has shown me it is not what the rest of the campus sees that defines their fraternity, it's actually the things that goes on behind closed doors that enhances their sense of brotherhood and turns them into men.

Well, I will not get into what ever went on behind close doors I can tell you that the men I lived on Third West for 2 years are my brothers. I love them very much and it will be weird to live my life this year not around any of them.

So...what are my greek letters? Most fraternitys and sororitys identify themselves with three letters...I've got 5....

WWIII

Choose your own Adventure

Robert Frost talked about the road less traveled....getting to a spot where the road we are taking splits and goes into two different directions. One, the beaten comfortable path and one the less traveled....he chose the less traveled path.

For my generation, we know it as the choose your own adventure books. We eagerly read the first ten pages just to be confronted with a choice... usually it intended something along the lines of going into a very creepy door, or running the opposite direction in an effort to live. Most importantly, we dreaded reading the book and realizing we had chose the wrong path and died.

With these books being such a huge part of most people's childhoods now a days it is easy to see why many 20 somethings are petrified by making the "wrong choice." I myself am not exempt from this at all. Literally, 20 minutes ago I set up my first real job interview post college...at a corporate event marketing firm.

For most people that know me, they are wondering....why on earth am I trying to get a job at a corporate place. I am petrified of being a corporate cubical junkie that wastes away the best part of the day doing work. So, I am worried that if this job actually happens my next chapter will have a dreadfully awful illustration of my back to a cubical working way to hard for not enough money.

But then I realized one important thing. At the end of every chapter in life theres another choice, a chance to reinvent things...so maybe I am actually make the right move...heck maybe this is a transition chapter where there is no right or wrong move?  

Let the adventure begin...

A Tribute, advice, and a glimpse of inspiration

Okay, one thing that has been clear about my adventure into blogging is that I am not a habitual writer, forget the J result on the Myers-Briggs, sometimes I enjoy a bit of spontaneity. This blog is no different, posts will happen whenever I feel inspired, and today my inspiration came from one word, from a very, very, close friend.

Starbucks

For those of you who know me, you know that probably 50% of every paycheck I got from Taylor was spent on some type of coffee product, no matter if it is overpriced or not. But, it was this phrase from my dear friend that truly made me think.

"Heck, I could work at Starbucks for 5 years, work at a church for free and love my life."

Work at a church for free? Wait a second, people work for free anymore? Some people would classify that as a volunteer, but whatever happened to, as he put it, "rolling up my sleeves and getting my hands dirty." And more than that, doing it because you WANT to do it and you find JOY in SERVING the LORD instead of having people EXPECT you to do it because you are the paid staff person..... interesting concept don't you think?

Okay, the true inspiration also came from that one word Starbucks.  A few of my friends from home have been telling me to get a job there and I have been hesistent for one reason...pride.

I'll be honest, I just graduated college and feel like that a "real job" should have just fallen into my life by now. I have a lot of experience, a great education, and the ability to work hard. So why would I want to waste my time at Starbucks? Tonight my friend has made me realize that sometime your job that makes the money, will not be your full time occupation....Dave Brown...thank you.....

A Cure for the Taylor Hangover

A hangover, it is something I can say that I have experienced based on a couple nights with an excess amount of coffee and caffeine intake. That groggy, queasy, headache ridden day seems to drag on with every second feeling like an hour.

Don't believe me? Try for yourself.....

Anyways, the fact of the matter is a conversation came up about the idea of a Post-Taylor Hangover. With many Seniors still staggering around after the whirlwind weekend known as Commencement, some of us are just now waking up to the real world...and not liking what were seeing.  Some are challenged by the idea they are now alone in their faith, some are feeling lost without the group of friends, and some are just afraid to wake up.

Well, my friends I think this weekend has set the Taylor alarm clock off in my head and I have woken up, kinda wondering what the heck just happened. This past weekend I had the privilege to watch Rob Bedinghaus and Kate Yoder get married, and I was surrounded with some of the best friends a guy could ask for. I found myself sitting back in the car trying to reflect on my Taylor experience, something that I have been avoiding.

Reflecting, in itself, is the beginning of accepting the end. My room is still not unpacked, I am still looking for a job and I still honestly believe that in a month of a half I will be surrounded by everyone again, I mean to be honest I have seen Taylor friends every week this summer. 

This hangover can be dangerous. It allows us to wallow in our own self-pity, it allows us to remain in the past instead of trusting God for our future, and most importantly not value the moments I have had in the past month and a half....

A common hang over is treated one of two ways....tons of water and aspirin, or drinking the substance that caused the hang over in the first place, thus giving the body what it is with-drawling from.

The Cure for the Taylor Hangover....well, my title may have been misleading. Realistically, there is no cure for the Taylor Hangover. The closest thing I can figure out is being okay with taking one day at a time and enjoying every minute of it. Being thankful for the experiences God gives you, and trusting that everything is okay. 

This is life?

Okay, I am not shy about admitting that my life direction seems non-existent at this point. Weekend after weekend, I meet people that come up to me and realize I am a recent college graduate. Well, lets be serious graduating college would not fit into the column of glamorous. My life has been anything but typical, with each day being completely different then the next and I consistently wait for the weekend, eagerly anticipating a few days of what seems like no responsibilities.

So, one has to post the question. Is this what my life is going to be like?

No structure, no stability, not feeling settled anywhere, just floating around all week to have fun over the weekend, fun that costs an arm and a leg in gas. It is hard to describe what it is like to realize that there are people all over the country that feel the exact thing I do. The reason? None of those people seem to live with a 20 mile radius of 2600 Sigwalt st. With friends either having a job, a direction for a job, or the worst of them all a future husband/wife all locked you have to ask the question, why not me? I look for jobs, just none of them seem like the type of job I envisioned myself having post Taylor, and the female situation? Ha, another blog.

So, what is the real challenge of living in a post-taylor world with Bachelor's degree?

Is it finding a job?

no.

Is it finding a wife?

no/I sure hope not.

Is it keeping in touch with friends?

Ha, I've seen Taylor people every week, and if people want to get a hold of me they do.

No, the real challenge is everyday life. It's making the most of everyday, not knowing what the next day is going to bring....we'll see if I am up to the challenge.

Reality Check

So, I knew it was coming. 

I felt like I had been transitioning really well back into my suburban lifestyle. However, today has not been a good day. With every day that passes I realize that I will just be further and further away from my college experience. It makes it slightly harder that my cell phone is broken and I have no contact to my Taylor community.

However, this reality check is going to be okay...you know why? Because there is no other option. There will be rough days and there will be better days but most importantly, I must remember that the days wont stop. It is up to me to make the transition work. Really, that's all I got, will see what the next couple days bring.

A Beautiful Collision

Welcome! 

Recently, I just graduated Taylor University, and when I mean recently, I mean yesterday.

So, this blog will act as an updater of my life and will hopefully will be a page full of many excited developments of my life. 

A Beautiful Collision, a fascinating concept if you ask myself. How on Earth can you call a collision, something that leaves objects, people, and lives mangled,destroyed,marred, and ugly beautiful? When I think of beauty I don't necessarily think of a car accident on the side of the road, or when two people run into each other during a sporting event.

However, I currently am living in a Beautiful Collision. I have moved home with a Bachelor's Degree in my belt and tons of new friends from school. However, I am now away from them and have to adjust to the life I had back home. So, these two worlds are coming to collide together, trying to battle for importance and prominence in my life.

Well, I am happy to say they are all as equally important, as I look to the past,and live in the present, and look forward to the future I see beauty. My life is beautiful, it would be perfect if all of my worlds could happen at the same time, but they won't and they can't. Instead, I am looking forward to what my friends can do and what I will do in the future.