Joe's Tidbits Collection

For a while now, I've been observing that sometimes I have some sorta random thoughts that would be nice to record. These types of thoughts are not really long drawn out trains of thought (ie "wise thoughts") but they're longer than just a short quote (ie "Cute Quotes"). So I thought I'd try out this type of a format where I could just write my thoughts in brief. Consider it the closest thing I have to a true "blog".

Thu, Jul 15, 2004
I think I'm in the mood for family camp. I have had "community" on my mind for a while now (months, maybe years), and family camp plays right into that mood. I went to Watershed tonight, and it reminded me of family camp -- kinda informal, fun people, seeing friends again (after 6 days -- not quite like a year, but ya know) -- so it was a good time. In similar thought, "Cedar Springs, here I come."

So on another tangent, I wonder how I will feel coming away from family camp. I have learned to have low expectations of things and to be pleasantly surprised rather than let down. I think (hope) I'm doing better at that than I used to. But family camp is, for those who don't know, maybe the highlight of my entire year. So I hope it doesn't let me down. If it does, would it be because of my unrealistic hopes, or what? We'll see. Life besides family camp is pretty cool now too (the summer attitude maybe), so even if it does let me down it's not the end of the world. God is still good, the world is still beautiful...Peace out, dudes, as the young folk say. :-)

Fri, Jul 8, 2004
I wonder how large of a role common interests play in friendships, or more correctly into "hanging out" in the young adult sense. If I am best buds with someone, that doesn't always mean I'll enjoy every minute spent with him, if we're doing some activity that I find rather pointless or annoying. I suppose that fact is normal, but it's a weird feeling. We like to think that if someone is our best bud, we will love spending time -- any time -- with them. But I think it's okay if there are times when we think, "Ya know I like Bob here, but I just don't feel in the mood to be very bubbly and friendly in this boring environment." Ebb and flow, moderation, nothing is perfect all the time, but nothing is crummy all the time either.