i hope it keeps shaking me up.

i hope seeing a life taken keeps breaking me.

i mean, i would rather not see it happen…

…but if i ever do, may i never pass by without giving it a second thought.

that was someone’s father, brother, son…

and indepenently of all others, a human being.

may i never stop seeing the human in others

may i never lose my humanity.

lance armstrong cheated to win. he says he was just leveling the playing field or whatever, but at the end of the day, he cheated.

if he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have won, and i wouldn’t have ever known about the tour de france, or anytning cycling related. he wouldn’t have gotten a whole lot of sponsorships and started a foundation for cancer research and all that.

but he did. and lives have been or potentially will be saved because of it.

a bunch of his old sponsors want to sue him and make him pay back the money he made off of them, but what about the money they made off of him? like, i’m sure there are people out there who bought a certain bike or whatever other product because lance armstrong used it…are they allowed to get refunds from the companies?

some angry person on twitter the other day was talking about how lance wrongly motivated people…wtf? wrongly motivated? either he motivated you to do shit, or he didn’t. and if he did, then you gained from it. how dare you be angry about recieving motivation.

so maybe he did cheat and then go on to lie about it, but good came out of it yea?

and i do so many wrong things in my life, like who am i to judge him for what he did.

i wish he hadn’t cheated, i really do. but well, he did. it’s over. let’s keep living strong and fighting for cancer patients and stuff, yea?

Here’s an excerpt:

600 people reached the top of Mt. Everest in 2012. This blog got about 5,000 views in 2012. If every person who reached the top of Mt. Everest viewed this blog, it would have taken 8 years to get that many views.

Click here to see the complete report.

This of course was not true…or maybe it was…ok, here’s the deal: I’m an introvert.

Basically what that means is, I love my alone-time more than you do…I assume. I assume this because non-extroverts love hanging out with people, they love having parties, going out, etc…and when you decline their invitation they say things like “why are you being so anti-social?”

It’s difficult being an introvert. 90% of the time, I prefer being alone. The problem is that 10%. There ARE times when I get lonely, when I actually feel like being around other people. Unfortunately, due to the fact that I spent a lot of my time as a kid trying to be alone, I never worked on my social skills…which is really weird considering I have had quite a few friends in my life…including being in the “popular group” in middle school.

So, as with this friend, I’ve had people who have come into my life, and stayed, despite the fact that I seem to be pushing them away. I’m not infant trying to push them away, I just don’t know how to be around people for too long. It drains me. It’s tiresome to my core…to the point where, no matter how much I want to hang out with you, I can’t get myself to leave my room.

And then there are those weird moments when I hype myself so much about an event that, by the time it actually rolls around, I’m so over it…I’ve thought and rethought all the possible awkward conversations, all the awkward silences, all the mundane socially-acceptable responses…”balsamic vinegar…hahaha” (watch the dinner party episode of the IT Crowd to get that reference) that by the time it actually rolls around, I’ve pretty much tired of it…so I don’t go.

The original heading of this post was “I’m an introvert, deal with it,” but I realized that, more than I need you to deal with it, I need you to understand it – to accept me as I am, and try to work around it somehow…understand that, if you are my friend, i do want you around…I just don’t always know how to show it…and as an introvert, I really do NEED my alone time…if I don’t, I might be there physically, but…

Anyway, this is all to say to those who “forced the relationships”, thank you for sticking around.

Why people think Christians are fake. – Jon Acuff

the journey – Kathy Richards

youversion – Jake Lee

on tripping – Valerie Anderson

that moment today when you get to change the world – Carlos Whittaker

the other side of the wedding – Dee Koko

who cares who you date – Dee Koko

PC Paradise Lost: The Tale of Anna and Steve – Jon Acuff

Is This Sacrilegious Or Hilarious? My Thoughts On Jesus’ Sense Of Humor – Carlos Whittaker

a donkey called whip – Michael-John Phillip

the reason they don’t listen

Taboo Topics: Pornography and Masturbation [Intro] – Brett Anderson

sex and the Christian woman – Cassi Clerget

sex: the thing I’m expected to view as sin until my wedding night when it transforms into a “beautiful thing” – Nandipha Jonas

I Want a Crucifixion Type Love Poem by Brent Rice – TquoizBlog

Personal Poster of Passion and Inspiration. – Zel Archer

mark me – Darrell Hoffland

Your Relationship With God Summed Up In 23 Seconds – Carlos Whittaker

the limited opportunity – I wrote this for you

do I wait or do i go – Brett Anderson

love letter to my body – lots of letters from ladies declaring love to – and apologizing for the pain they’ve caused – their bodies…great read.

the vagenda: hair! (not the musical) – Emer

Forgetting how crazy God is about redemption. – Jon Acuff

Wishing your church bulletin explained the worship leader’s tattoos. – Jon Acuff

The Bourne-Again Identity – Jon Acuff

An open letter to the buried – Billy Coffey

the clarity of light – Kathy Richards

Nelson Mandela: Fascinating anecdotes from people who knew him – Khaya Dlanga

Anyway, when I went to Langa, there were about 10 of us volunteers. We set up two stations – one near the taxi rank, and another in a park somewhere. The soup at the taxi rank went by rather quickly, as did the sandwiches. Ended up giving out plain bread, for which people were still grateful. The kids also got chips and sweets. And obviously were very keen on having their pics taken.

I found the whole experience very fulfilling. I am a big fan of bringing smiles to other people. And maybe once a week doesn’t seem like much to you and me, but it seemed like it meant a lot to the people on the receiving end.

I would highly recommend, if you’re in Cape Town, to volunteer one Saturday to help those less fortunate than yourself.

Trying not to like Penn Jillette – Kathy Richards

I want destiny, not a desert. – Jon Acuff

Enter in, Theodicy – JakeLee

The power of a single word – Billy Coffey

The easiest way to write a country song. – Jon Acuff

The Things Which Aren’t Love – I wrote this for you