25 Things

I cannot believe I'm doing this, but enough friends have led the way, so I am now merely a follower in this great cause called 25 THINGS. You know the drill.


I was a "professional" pastor for 2-5 years, depending on how you view it.

I never tell that fact to a soul.

I'll always be a pastor in some way, shape, or form.

I am jealous of my wife's patience, thoughtfulness, and care toward both Pax and I. I would always try to give the same energy back, but it comes at a cost I'm not willing to pay some times.

Part of the reason I love Portland so much is because it reminds me of where I grew up in north Texas. In some ways.

Part of the reason I love Portland so much is because it reminds me of San Francisco. In some ways.

I love wine, but am still a novice oenophile who likes to pretend.

I wanted to wear glasses so badly in high school that I wore fake glasses.

I love the outdoors.

I'm terrified of camping by myself or with Holly or really outside at all. I am convinced that either A) Someone is going to kill me or B) Some animal will make me their midnight snack.

I am so afraid of heights/falling, that when we rode a gondola in Switzerland, I cried for the full 5 minutes. It was quite a sight.

I love dogs, but I don't want one right now.

I hate cats. I hate, hate, hate, hate, hate cats. Period. There is no cat that is like a dog (sorry Jesse) and I cannot stand cats. I am simply opposed to them philosophically and pragmatically. Nuff said.

I fear that I will fail at everything I start, so I start fewer things than I used to.

I am deeply skeptical of people who are really dispassionate and hard to provoke.

I am even more skeptical of people who are passionate about everything under the sun.

I have been both of those people at some point along the way.

I cannot imagine a life without Paxton, yet he has made my life more complicated than I ever thought it could be.

Paxton and Holly have a direct line to my heart which means that they, more than anyone else, can make me laugh and smile and make me curse my existence more quickly than any one else I know.

I have always felt like a poser.

I keep waiting for the day when I will do something just because I want to or think it is a good thing to do, regardless of who's watching. For me, everything is material and my life feels like a performance. (Some of you will get that; some of you won't.)

I like singing and writing songs, but I will not die if I cannot touch my guitar ever again. I don't need it that way. But I enjoy it.

I always wanted to be able to draw or articulate visions on paper. But I never could. Not even with a computer.

I think that most all people simply do what makes sense to them and then write their story (or call on authority) to support their case.

I am a recovering fundamentalist who is fundamentally opposed to fundamentalism in all forms...progressive, conservative, religious, idealogical. Basically I'm opposed to believing 100% in anything, simply because I feel that if you cannot critique your self, your group, your identity, your society, your world, then you're not really seeing clearly. Am I fundamentalist about this? Well I did say that I'm fundamentally opposed to fundamentalism, so you do the word math.