Music: G-H-I-J-K-L-M-N-O-P-Q-R

[Album/Artist] "Song"—memory

[Give Yourself Away/Robbie Seay Band] "Rise"—Crossroads
[Gotee Records/Family Force 5] "Kountry Gentleman"—Julie
[A Grateful People/Watermark] "More Than You'll Ever Know"—Kris and Cami
[Grease] "Summer Lovin'"—Andrea's house, middle school, along with that mall board game, and that metalcasting set
[Guero/Beck]—freshman year of college
[Guys and Dolls] "Sit Down You're Rockin' The Boat"—an overwritten cassette, hello how are you doooing...

[Harmful If Swallowed/Dane Cook] "Stupid Alarm Clock Games"—Meghan, freshman year of college
[Hello Dolly!]—Steph, sleeping in muslin piles
[Hideaway/The Weepies] "Just Blue"—driving away from the Hatchet on a cold rainy morning
[The Highest Heights/The Lovebugs] "21st Century Man"—driving with Darwin on the way to Herzogenbuchsee
[Hits/Joni Mitchell] "Both Sides Now"—March 2009
[The Hits/REO Speedwagon] "Keep On Lovin' You"—Dad, the falling over letters
[The Holiday] "Three Musketeers"—Allison
[Home Alone Christmas/Fox Albert Choir] "My Christmas Tree"—Matt, and the Thanksgiving tradition
[Hook] "Presenting the Hook"—a certain bet
[Hopes and Fears/Keane]—Julie
[Horse of a Different Color/Big and Rich]—Senior year of high school, backstage at JLJ, Todd
[Hot Fuss/The Killers]—Julie, getting into the car in the park in Napoleon
[Hotel Paper/Michelle Branch]—Tiffany, painting the 4-H booth
[How It Ends/Devotchka] "How It Ends"—Megan and our drives freshman year
[How To Dismantle An Atomic Bomb/U2] "City of Blinding Lights"—watching A Devil Wears Prada, dad, warm socks
[How To Save A Life/The Fray]—Alyssa
[Hunchback of Notre Dame]—freshman year art history
[Hungriges Herz/Scala and Kolacny Brothers] "Hungriges Herz"—late nights at the Lindenhof flat

[I Am Telling You For The Last Time/Jerry Seinfeld]—Julie, the Kramer silkscreen, Lord of the Flies and AP Lit
[In Bruges]—Katie, assigned theater seats
[Into the Light/Gloria Estefan] "Coming Out Of The Dark"—Dad, the blue Toyota
[Into Your Head/BB Mak]—high school
[Invincible/Skillet] "Best Kept Secret"—wrecklessly pulling into the high school parking lot
[It's Time/Michael Bublé] "Home"—Linda, and driving to Denver

[Jagged Little Pill/Alanis Morissette] "All I Really Want"—Full House
[Jeff Buckley] "Je Nein Connias Pas La Fin"—Jeremiah
[Jerry Maguire/The Who] "Getting In Tune"—late night TV with Dad
[Jock Jams 4/Backstreet Boys] "Everybody"—bedroom dance routines
[Jock Rock 2000/Barenaked Ladies] "One Week"—learning the lyrics in the piano room
[Jock Rock 2000/Fatboy Slim] "Rockerfella Skank"—Christmas at grandma's, She's All That
[Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat]—watching high schoolers in awe
[Josh's Mix/Eminem] "Lose Yourself"—memorizing the lyrics, singing them to Brian freshman year of college
[Joshua Tree/U2] "In God's Country"—driving towards Pikes Peak on a clear morning
[Joshua Tree/U2] "
[Journey Greatest Hits/Journey] “Don’t Stop Believin’”—the Accord
[Juno/The Moldy Peaches] “Anyone Else But You”—When Harry Met Sally

[Kala/M.I.A.] “Paper Planes”—Brooke

[L’integrale Piaf/Edith Piaf]—Camille
[Lady Antebellum] “I Run To You”—Heidi, driving to white water rafting
[LeftRightLeftRightLeft/Coldplay] “Glass of Water”—Coldplay concert/June 2009
[Les Misérables] “Castle On A Cloud”—Solo and Ensemble, middle school choir
[Let Go/Avril Lavigne] “Tomorrow”—driving in the dark, high school
[Let It Die/Feist]—Alicia, Brooklyn
[Life in Cartoon Motion/MIKA]—Julie, New York summer 2007
[Lift/Audio Adrenaline]—Dave and Youth Crew
[Lykki Li] “Dance Dance Dance”—Lily
[Line Dances] “Electric Slide”—Camp Palmer
[Lion King]—collector cards, the genius idea of combining them
[Listen To My Heart]—seeing it at CCM, emotional turmoil
[Little Voice/Sara Barielles]—Christie’s, the Upper East Side in the rain
[Love, Angel, Music, Baby/Gwen Stefani] “Hollaback Girl”—

[Man Comes Around/Johnny Cash] “Hurt”—the upstairs apartment, Basel
[A Mark, A Mission, A Brand, A Scar/Dashboard Confessional]—high school in the rain, driving home for Thanksgiving break sophomore year of college]
[Mary Poppins]—Matt, junior year of high school
[The Matrix/Rob D.] “Clubbed to Death”—the parsonage, Luther League
[Mean Girls/Joe Budden] “Fire”—teen angst
[Memory Almost Full/Paul McCartney]—New York summer 2007
[Miles Davis]—Todd
[Millennium/Backstreet Boys] “Larger Than Life”—
[MmHmm/Relient K]—Phil
[Moulin Rouge] “Lady Marmalade”—Erica’s house for a sleepover
[Move Along/All-American Rejects]—Amanda
[Movie Love Themes/Cincinnati Pops] “Main Theme from On Golden Pond”—Mom
[Movie Music–The Definitive Performances/The Byrds “Ballad of Easy Rider”—Survey of Film, spring 2008
[Mr. Holland’s Opus]—middle school band
[Mrs. Doubtfire]—grandma’s living room
[Music Man]—New York
[My Girl] “Main Theme”—Sunday mornings eating pop-tarts

[Newsies]—middle school choir
[Nickel Creek]—Kris
[Nina Simone]—Sam, A2
[No Line on the Horizon/U2] “Unknown Caller”—the Voltaplatz hi-fi system, Sam, Dublin pubs
[No Pads, No Helmets, Just Balls/Simple Plan]—Amanda’s mixes
[Now/Fastball] “The Way”—
[Now 2/Fatboy Slim] “Praise You”—
[Now 4/Train] “Meet Virginia”—
[Now Christmas/Bing and David Bowie] “Little Drummer Boy/Peace on Earth”—grandma and WNDH

[Ocean Avenue/Yellowcard] “One Year, Six Months”—high school
[Ocean’s 12]—Todd
[On A Clear Night/Missy Higgins] “Where I Stood”—driving with Linda, the Springs
[Once/Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová]—salmon spaghetti and missing keys
[One Cell In The Sea/A Fine Frenzy] “The Minnow & The Trout]—Allison
[One Cell In The Sea/A Fine Frenzy] “Hope for the Hopeless”—post New York trip, December 2008
[Only By The Night/Kings of Leon] “Sex on Fire”— driving with Darwin to Herzogenbuchsee
[Only the Lonely/Frank Sinatra] “Guess I’ll Hang My Tears Out To Dry”—
[Our Endless Numbered Days/Iron & Wine]—Kris

[The Parent Trap/The La’s] “There She Goes”—Amanda, dreams of traveling
[Patch Adams/Stills and Nash] “Carry On”—
[Paul Simon Anthology]—Amanda
[Pee Wee’s Big Adventure]—Amanda
[Phil Collins: Hits] “I Wish It Would Rain Down”—my parents
[Philadelphia/Bruce Springsteen] “Streets of Philadelphia”—freshman year of college, winter break
[Pink Moon/Nick Drake]—
[The Producers]—the Odyssey
[Psycho–The Essential Alfred Hitchcock] “Dial M for Murder Suite”—watching AMC with mom
[Purest Place/Watermark]—Cami
[PureVolume/Houston Automatic] “Brilliant”—high school

[Rain Man/The Belle Stars] “Iko Iko”—Lamborghinis, mom
[The Reason/Hoobastank] “Lucky”—high school, driving from play practice
[Rent]—Alyssa, Jeremy
[Revolutionary Road/Thomas Newman] “Golden People”—Pathe! Theaters, cultural misunderstandings
[Rockferry/Duffy] “Mercy”—A2, giraffe dress
[Rocky/Bill Conti] “Gonna Fly Now”—Philly art museum
[Room for Squares/John Mayer]—the light booth, Bye Bye Birdie, spring 2003
[Royal Tenenbaums]—Kay and Jordan, the house on Wayne Park Drive

Music: A-B-C-D-E-F

Isn't it amazing how music can unlock a secret hatch in your brain? The staff lines peel apart, and spew 10-year-old lyrics flawlessly.

I have a little free time tonight. Went through my iTunes. Now regurgitating my music memories.

[Album/Artist] "Song"—memory

[Aladdin] "Arabian Nights"—my cousins' basement, laying on the longhair carpet
[Albertine/Brooke Fraser] "Seeds"—the F train, New York
[All For Coffee/Shane Piasecki] "She Falls Like Rain"—junior year of high school
[All That You Can't Leave Behind/U2] "Walk On"—the Friends finale
[Anthems for the Imperfect/Everyday Sunday] "The One"—AALC Youth Conference, 2005
[Armageddon] "Animal Crackers"—Napoleon Public Library
[Assassination of Jesse James/Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds]—Melody and the Voltaplatz flat
[Atlantic Records: 50 Years] "Yakety Yak" and "Mack the Knife"—singing to myself in the Civic
[Atlantic Records: 50 Years/Sister Sledge] "We Are Family"—Old Navy
[Autobiography/Ashlee Simpson] "Shadow"—high school

[Back to Black/Amy Winehouse]—cleaning the Lindenhofstraße flat
[Balance/Van Halen] "Seventh Seal'—driving home from shark dissections
[Blue Man Group]—Chicago
[Baum Pre-Production] "Hope That We Once Had"—Fasnacht 2009
[Beatles 1/The Beatles] "Ob-La-Di Ob-La-Da"—pizza making party in Indian Hill
[Beautiful Lumps of Coal/Plumb]—Krista and ROAR, 2005
[Beauty from Pain/Superchick]—painting the Calvins in the high school hallway
[Bedknobs and Broomsticks]—red card table, felt bears, toast with brown sugar, sink-washed hair
[Beethoven]—Homecoming dresses and champagne flutes of Mountain Dew
[Begin to Hope/Regina Spektor] "Samson"—jan 2009
[Ben Folds Live] "Zac and Sara"—high school
[Best Of/Ricky Martin] "Livin' La Vida Loca"—middle school dances
[Best Of/Steppenwolf] "Magic Carpet Ride"—Spence from "The King of Queens"
[Billy Joel Greatest Hits] "We Didn't Start The Fire"—middle school choir
[Billy Joel Greatest Hits] "Piano Man"— Senior AP Comp
[Blue/Third Eye Blind] "Wounded"—summer nights in Napoleon
[Breakaway/Kelly Clarkson] "Breakaway"—high school graduation
[Breakaway/Kelly Clarkson] "Since U Been Gone"—a certain speeding incident
[Busted Stuff/DMB] "Where Are You Goin'"—high school art

[Cake] "Wheels"—freshman year of college
[Candycoatedwaterdrops/Plumb] "Late Great Earth"—painting the 4-H booth in the garage
[Chutes Too Narrow/The Shins]—watching Garden State
[Circle/Eddie Izzard]—watching Lego YouTube videos at the WG table
[Classic Hits Live/Foreigner] "Juke Box Hero"—high school
[Classic Queen] "Bohemian Rhapsody"—Brianna's house, 7th grade
[Collection of Short Stories/Houston Calls]—Phil
[Come Away With Me/Norah Jones]—sleepovers at Kristen's apartment
[Cracked Rear View/Hootie and the Blowfish]—the Dodge Grand Caravan, driving to Cleveland

[Dan's Mix III/Beck] "E-Pro"—freshman year of college
[Dance Into The Light/Phil Collins]—driving to Cleveland
[Devil Wears Prada/KT Tunstall]—"Suddenly I See"—walking in heels with a big smile
[Dixie Chicks] "Travelin' Soldier"—Katie with her new driver's license
[Dizzy Up The Girl/Goo Goo Dolls]—
[Dog Problems/The Format]—Spoon concert at Battery Park
[Drastic Fantastic/KT Tunstall] "Paper Aeroplane"—grey cube at HQ

[Edward Scissorhands]—the TNT network
[Elliot Smith]— "Good Will Hunting'
[Enchanted]—St. Louis with Katie
[Essential Simon and Garfunkel]—walking through Central Park in the winter
[Eve 6] "Anytime"—peeling out of the high school parking lot
[Everything You Want/Vertical Horizon] "You're A God"—
[Eye To The Telescope/KT Tunstall] "Black Horse & Cherry Tree"—Soho Apple store
[Eyes Open/Snow Patrol] "Chasing Cars"—St. Louis with Megan

[Feels Like Today/Rascal Flatts] "Skin"—HCF grandstand
[Finally Woken/Jem] "Save Me"—paint chips freshman year DAAP
[Finding Neverland] "Impossible Opening"—Bible study in Siddall, freshman year
[Firm, The] "Memphis Stomp"—piano music store in Chicago?
[Five] "When The Lights Go Out"—middle school with Brianna
[Five Leaves Left/Nick Drake]—winter snow falling
[Freaky Friday/Diffuser] "I Wonder"—high school

[Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga/Spoon] "You Got Your Cherry Bomb"—Dunkin' Donuts by the WTC

Denver Dancing and Other Weekend Fun

So for the heck of it, I drove up to Denver with a fellow intern on Friday night to go to the Colorado Country Classic.

I really had no idea what to expect. I knew that there would be open dancing, I knew that I can't dance, but agreed blindly anyways. My friend Linda had met some of the dancers in a club in downtown Colorado Springs the previous weekend, and learned West Coast Swing, so I was excited to learn that, and then see what else came our way.

Stopped in Aurora to pick up another fellow intern, who was graciously letting us stay at her house for the night, and then headed to the competition. Reaching the hotel where the competition was being held, I was floored by 90s, Full House atmosphere that was being exuded; diamond studded everything, clothes that could have easily donned Tara Lipinski, stage makeup, two-tiered ponytails, dancing shoes, pre-competition massage stations... it was a total subculture. We sat down to watch the Pro-Am competition, a lot like Dancing with the Stars. We felt sort of stalker-like, because by the end we knew all the competitors' names, and had our favorites.

On Saturday, we went to a Cherry Blossom Festival at Sakura Square in downtown Denver. It was much smaller than we anticipated, and I couldn't find any homemade paper, so we made our way to the to Tattered Cover, a bookstore in LoDo (Lower Denver) that is eclectic, and has a pretty amazing selection. I have been recently introduced to McSweeney's, which is a literary magazine that has some killer package designs. I loved the homey, lodge-like atmosphere.


Before we left, went to a restaurant called Mad Greens, a salad place on the 16th Street Mall. With salads like the "Edgar Allen Poe" and "da Vinci" it was certainly quirky and delish. When coming back to the Springs, I headed to the baseball park to see the Colorado Springs SkySox play the Portland Beavers (farm league). It was Navs night, and I stood at the table with my roommate, Julie, telling people about NavPress and giving out free devotionals. It was freezing and raining, definitely not good baseball weather. There were two rain delays, and after awhile Julie and I got too cold and antsy to wait any longer... so we decided to get ice cream instead!

This morning, I tried Woodman Valley Chapel, a church just a few miles away from my apartment. One of the funniest moments of the service was when the British worship leader said, "You will probably never hear this from anyone else, but Happy 4th of July from England!" The message was really pertinent, speaking about change, and how we deal and persevere. Afterwards, the couple sitting next to me invited me out to brunch, so that was fun, getting to know new people and hear their viewpoints on the church.

So much more to say, since everything is new at this point, but too tired. Excited to share more as the days progress!

Colorado Architecture

Besides the natural architecture of the mountains, and some of the crazy-big homes that are nestled in them, Colorado Springs has the same corporate "boxes" as a lot of other towns across America. It's funny, though, because boxmakers make some sort of attempt to "Colorado-fy" their boxes by adding stone facade and veneers. Check out this Lowe's:

Sometimes I feel like the chains are trying to fool us; we are not the Big Bad Wolf, we are products of the mountains, that have been unearthed and now bring you low-price goods. Eh, just a thought.

"Lawn Ornaments"

Ute Valley Park in right across the street from my house, so lots of convenient hiking! I have really been trying to take advantage of my surroundings, and love to have beautiful views of the sunset and of Pikes Peak. I have seen so much wildlife, as you can see from the photo, there are always a few Bambi lurking about. I want to keep a "Creature Count," but I have seen so much so far. I think I have seen at least a deer a day, many jackrabbits, and the Colorado state bird, the Lark Bunting.

"The Glen"

So when you wake up in the morning, and see Pike's Peak, you think it can't get much better. And then I remember that I work near a castle. Woah.

This castle is part of Glen Eyrie, and was built by General Palmer, the founder of Colorado Springs, near the Garden of the Gods. It was once owned by Billy Graham, and then the Navigators. Now the Carriage House is a coffee shop, and there are tours that run through regularly. They also have a High Tea, which would be fun to check out. At this point, I've only been on the trails, so I am excited to see and learn more.

The trails and the grounds are always open to NavsStaff. It's pretty cool, flashing my ID badge and entering the grounds.

Below is a picture of Dawson Trotman's grave, founder of the Navigators. He has a really good view of the grounds and of the Garden of the Gods! I learned of Dawson a few years ago in Large Group (in Cincinnati), but have learned much more about him in the last week. Will probably dedicate a post to that later on when I know more.

Navs Headquarters

Began work on Monday, and dove right into my project! I will be designing the 2010 Short Term Summer Missions brochure for Navigators, and working on an overall identity and grid system design for the group, part of their "Reimagining" process. It has been awesome learning about the behind the scenes work that goes into mission work, and seeing all of the arms of the Navigators reaching out to the World. I've heard our team, USIMG (United States International Missions Group), described as the "home" team, and the overseas workers as the "away." I love to see how our work here can supplement others'!

I am excited for the Family Gathering, which will be July 10–16. This is an event where nearly 60 people from their stations around the world will come to relax and enjoy time in Colorado, while also work through hardships that they are facing there. I will be working with 3–6 year old, teaching a sort of Vacation Bible School program on the Armor of God. I am thrilled to be mingling with this age group, and very excited to do crafts with them! I am also interested to see if they relate more to American or their other culture, or see what languages come most easily to them.

The people here are extremely encouraging and inviting. My boss, Mark, took me to each cubicle on the first day, and introduced me to the entire team (United States International Missions Group). It seems like people genuinely care about each other here, and have time to listen and answer questions. One woman took a good 45 minutes of her morning to answer questions that I had concerning identity crises of missionary kids, or living in dangerous situations. She was willing to share some of her experience living in Bahrain during the wars. I really hope I can soak up all of their experiences, and see the mission world with open eyes.

I have been experiencing an acronym learning curve: USIMG (see above), PRT (People Resources Team), D4D (Discipleship for Development), NLT (National Leadership Team), EL (Eagle Lake), B2G (Better 2 Gether), MK (missionary kid), TCK (third culture kid) to name a few. And then of course, I am familiarizing myself with NIV, NLT, KJV, NAST... and The Message. Frequently, I think of that scene in RocketMan where Fred Randall is trying to blend by inserting acronyms that he knows into the preflight check... BMW, CNN, ATT...

Here is my cubicle. It is amazingly grey. Added some "spice" with photos and to-do lists, but is still in need of some help.


And this is around the corner, and a true joy to see everyday as I go to to the lunch room or to the bathroom. What is it? It's YOU! All of you that are going on Short Term Missions! I am thrilled to hear about all of the trips, and to be involved in this way. I can't wait to hear all of your stories, and see the ways God is developing you and the people you have been meeting. I think of you very often, and try to pray regularly for your safety and growth. AH! I am so excited for you, and what flavor this will bring to Navs in Cincinnati!