New Website Intro.

Some people (okay maybe a few friends) have been asking me about the new website/blog I plan on launching soon. I haven't worked out all the details to be honest or exactly the picture of the content, but I figure I can offer a direction I hope it's heading.

I'm a really passionate guy. I'm also really about community. The great thing about passion is that it's so contagious. I have this friend Grace and she loves making jewelry out of hemp. It doesn't particularly interest me, but it always comes up. Sometimes her passion pumps me up so much I find myself going home and researching more and more thinking about if I should get into making hemp jewelry. ...then I realize again it's not my thing. So what is this about? Hopefully that. I love learning and have gotten into a lot of things...ranging from gaming, photography, nutrition, music, to social justice. Maybe you're wondering, man I'd love to get more into _______, but I don't know a starting point. Hopefully I can help. Maybe you just don't know what you're passionate about. I can't promise you I'll help, but let's explore it together. Maybe you enjoy something that I enjoy, but sometimes you get stale with it (like many do, including myself), hopefully we can help be motivators to each other. Maybe you just want to laugh (with me or at me) hopefully that'll happen. I want the site to have a face. You can get to know me and I hope to get to know you. I'd love to hear from reader input and integrate it into posts so we can all grow together. There you have it. It's not everything or very refined, but that's my vision in short.

Any thoughts?

Happy Holidays 2008

Before I left Springfield for the year I went out to Sherman, IL with some friends and checked out Xavier Christmas Lights. I've heard that people drive from all over Illinois to check out the Christmas light show. They had their own FM Transmitter for Christmas music and the lights were synchronized with several different songs.

Here's a short video I put together so you can check it out:
(Sorry for the poor audio)



Bonus points to whoever can name the song playing in the last couple of seconds of the video.

Happy Holidays!

I'm Done With School for 2008

I finished my last final about 2 hours ago. Done. Thanks to my teachers for a great semester. I fly home to Oregon on Saturday. I can't wait!

Usually there's a blogger who posts about the first snow, but my camera is being repaired so I'll have to get back on that one. I would do the first snow of 2009, but I'll probably still be in Oregon.

This is about the best I can do right now...


Edit (3:35 PM):

I accidentally lied. I have a presentation tomorrow night.

Weekend Away + Last of Classes

Last weekend I took a trip over to Indiana and visited some of my great friends, Brad and Jen Ward! I had a great time just being able to hang out and catch up with them. Brad and Jen are one of the primary reasons that I started to enjoy my time at UIS, so whenever I have the chance to spend time with them it's great. They're great encouragements to me and Jen makes a mean mostacolli.

Here are some pictures from the weekend:

Bella the Beagle
A little family Christmas Photo...plus me.

Brad's currently doing big things in HigherEd using social media for Butler University and Jen's molding the youth of America. You can check out Brad's blog HERE and Jen's blog HERE.

As classes wrap-up in 2008 I can't help but feel a bit nostalgic, especially after seeing some of my first friends at UIS this past weekend. This is my last Fall semester of my undergraduate career! Unbelievable. I don't know what else to say about that at this point.

Now...back to some more studying.

An explanation of my winter "uniform"

Nett Lake, Minnesota 2007

Because I was standing on a frozen lake, I wasn't wearing flip flops or sandals, so sorry about the variation. Each year when the weather starts to get cold my dress never really changes. I stick what I enjoy wearing the most, shorts and sandals, the infamous combination that some people seem to know me for. Every year, friends and strangers alike will stop me to comment and say things along the lines of, "Don't you know it's (arbitrary below freezing number) degrees outside!? You're crazy, aren't you cold, put on some clothes!" Well honestly, I am kind of cold, I'm wearing shorts. But is it bearable? Yes. Why? Because shorts are so comfortable to me. The sacrifice of enduring the cold is so negligible in comparison to the freedom of wearing shorts that I can't help but stick to what I love. I'd say though...the only variation I've been seeming to consistently realize is stupid is the sandals. I've trekked through a foot of snow and ended up having to carry my flip flops and walk bare foot through the snow. Now that I don't enjoy at all. A large number of people ask me every year and hopefully after this post when you see me on campus with my shorts and sandals, you will understand me a bit more.

Also I'm very excited for this weekend! Planned ahead and got a little bit ahead on studying for finals / working on projects this week so I'm heading over to the Indianapolis area to visit some great friends, all UIS alumni! One being my brother and former UIS blogger (the original!) Brad J Ward. It's going to be amazing! I hope December is starting to be a great month for everyone!

Howard