Challenge Day 5

Last post for today, then I'm finally caught up!

Day 5: Post a picture of somewhere you've been.

The thingy never said if the place I've been had to be a country, city, landmark, thought, concept, somewhere foreign or difficult to get to, so I took a little liberty. I would like to personally introduce you all to Heaven on Earth - Siegfried's! I swear, the Germans know what they're doing when it comes to comfort food. On 200 South in Downtown Salt Lake, this is the best place to get lunch or dinner. Hands down.

Why did I choose Siegfried's Deli as the place I've been? Well, because I love this place! From what I've been told by my friends who have spent time in Germany, when you walk in, it's like you walked into a deli in the heart of Frankfurt. It's run by Germans, you typically have German TV playing, and you have access to boat loads of European foodstuffs that you normally wouldn't be able to find elsewhere. Not only that though, I just love it.The food is great, the owners are friendly, and it's easily accessible. And that's why it makes me happy! :-)

Blog Challenge: Day 4

Okay, so I'm continuing on with catching up for missed days.

The next topic is:

Day 4: Your favorite quote and why.


"No creature that deserved Redemption would need to be redeemed." - C.S. Lewis.

"Christ died for men precisely because men are not worth dying for; to make them worth it." - C.S. Lewis

-AND-

"You will certainly carry out God's purpose, but it makes a difference to whether you serve like Judas or like John." - C.S. Lewis

I have a philoso-crush on C.S. Lewis. MAJOR. I love reading what he has written, and I really enjoy his insight on religion and the world. If you ask me what I find most fascinating, it is probably just his opinion. To me, I think that he definitely took his time and put forth the effort to learn all that he possibly could about everything he wrote and spoke about. From what I've learned, Mr. Lewis loved God and respected all aspect of Christianity. That's why I chose some quotes from him as my favorite. To me, these quotes speak volumes about humanity and how we are really being perceived if you take a step back to examine us.

The first two quotes go hand-in-hand to me. We don't deserve redemption. We aren't worth it. Look what we do to each other on a global level... What do we do if we have an argument between national or religious borders? We go to war, and whichever side kills the most people wins. What's the point in that? I'm not going to get political by delving into whether or not I support wars, so don't ask for it. I just don't see the point in killing people to prove a point. However, why did Christ die for us? Why, though we aren't worth it, did He die for ALL mankind? Because we AREN'T worth it. The Son of God came to man so that man can become Sons (and Daughters) of God.

This last quote brings tears to my eyes. No matter who we are, which side of the spiritual war we're on, we are all going to carry out God's purpose. Who are we serving and fighting like though? Are we going to be Judases, or are we going to be Johns? Will we be called out on our betrayal, deny it, yet intentionally go through with it because of the "payment" we're promised in the end; or will we be Divine and Beloved? How are we fighting?

Blog Challenge: Day 3

Well, my "Faithful 5", this past weekend has been crazy! I've been either not feeling so great, running other errands, out with friends, or helping my friend finish recording some music for his album (look for Drew Reese on iTunes! You can find him on Twitter @drewreese, or on Facebook under Drew Reese-Music. Look for his newest album, "Redemption" on iTunes on Feb.8). Since I've flaked out right off the bat on this, I'm going to make up for lost days by posting three days at once! Well, not all in the same sitting, but you get the idea. Ready for a mind blowing read? Here it goes...

Day 3: A picture of you and your friends. *


     *I don't have as many pictures of my friends and myself as I should, so I'm picking the few that I think are best suited for the job!

*Sigh* Sam, Grant and Michele... These people are the greatest! I've known Grant pretty much since the day I moved into his neighborhood. Michele and I met at the tail end of our 8th grade year in school, and we've been great friends ever since. I met Sam that summer through Michele. Up until our graduation, we did just about everything together. For instance, we had a bunch of pictures taken one weekend at Kiddie Kandids, and this is one of them.

I see Michele and her husband all the time now, but I haven't seen Grant or Sam in a few years. It would be a lot of fun to "get the band back together" for a weekend. I really miss them all!

Rachel. Rachel, Rachel, Rachel...  :-) Enter the Snow College Year. We all know that I'm the best, most accomplished cellist in the area, but man, Rachel gave me a run for my money! All joking aside, she's a great friend! I think the best part of having Rachel down at Snow with me was the fact that if one of us couldn't readily find the other just walking around campus, chances were that we were in a practice room or studying in the music building.

We never really broke any laws, but we got close to being kicked out of school a couple times! (The trick is NOT being caught.) There was the Denny's Run where we piled 8 people in a coupe that barely fits 4. One night, we drove an hour into South to the nearest Denny's for late dinner/early breakfast in an expired car with one working headlight, no dashboard lights, no horn, a door that didn't shut all the way, two working seat belts, transmission that pops out of gear, and 8 people piled in. That night when we got back to school, we all played Hide-And-Seek and Sardines in the Concert Hall, all the while evading the campus security guards. We never actually got caught, but the campus newspaper wrote an article about how the security cameras saw "10 faceless people playing children's games in the music building" in the middle of the night. I figure it's safe to write about that since it was 4 years ago, and there wasn't anything said about it after it was posted in the paper. Shortly after that incident, we had our musical semester juries coming up. The month leading up to our juries, every practice room was occupied for all hours of the night by us students practicing and praying that we would pass. Well, Rachel and I decided to get creative since neither of us were ever able to actually snag a room of our own. One day after class, we propped the door open to the Concert Hall. That night we got to the building and just used the stage to practice our music on. Luckily, we were both playing one of the same pieces, so it worked out really well. After the building closed for the night, we came out of the Concert Hall and called the rest of our friends to come study and practice with us in the main lobby. We were easily up until 4 that morning practicing. Our juries were at 7...

Let's see... Erin (with my arm around her), Grant (over my right shoulder), and Christina (behind us. I'll have another of her later.)

I had just come back for the weekend from working in St. George for Erin's farewell in this one. It was great to be back because I was bombarded by all my friends at once! I've never felt so popular! Haha  Erin is Grant's sister, so that's how I know her. When we first met, we actually hated each other! I would get a ride home from school from Erin occasionally, and it was just awkwardly silent the whole ride. Out of nowhere though one summer, we became good friends. It must have just been because I'm so attractive...

Gah, Christina! You closed your eyes! Well, I've known Mark forever. I've known Christina and Kayla since the day I moved in here. Wow, Mark is darker than Christina here. The whitey is darker than the Samoan? Hmmm...

There really isn't any fantastic story behind this one or for these friends. They're just great people, and I'm really happy they're my friends. I mean, we've all been together for years, and that should count for something right? Kayla crushed on me hard, Mark crushed on Kayla really hard, Christina was Switzerland in all of this. She was our neutral power. (But I secretly have a huge crush on her anyway.)

The St. George Crew! These guys were the greatest! Besides the past 2 1/2 years, my time in St. George was the best time of my life! It was awesome, because 90% of the time, I was the only guy there at the site with a bunch of girls. Seriously, these girls are tough! I saw one girl get attacked by fire ants, sand wasps, a scorpion, and still work like nothing happened for the rest of the day. CRAZY! Okay, so the reason I was down there is because I was helping a good friend of mine with his company. He owns an archaeological consulting company, and he needed help with an excavation. Since I've had experience digging, he asked if I would be interested in taking the job down there for the year to excavate the Sand Hollow Resort. I learned a lot, did a lot of things I thought I'd never do, did things I'll never do again, ate some things I'd rather never eat again, saw some amazing things, and made fantastic friends! St. George Crew, I love you all! (Including the dudes.)

I snagged this picture from my friend Amanda. We met up with Drew one night for dinner at The Bayou in Salt Lake. Amanda is fantastic! She's very grounded, smart, witty, and fun to have around. She's one of the lucky few who get to be around me all the time! People would kill to fill her shoes...

Drew, why do you make it so hard to find pictures of you? I've known Drew for a few years. He's been a great friend, and he's always willing to get together for lunch whenever we need a break from life. Drew is a Pastor, Worship Leader, and is very accomplished. He just finished another album (his 4th, I believe) this week, to be released next week! He's a very talented musician, who sings and plays piano very well. He just started a non-profit ministry organization called Warrior Worship, to help benefit soldiers dealing with, and the families of those soldiers dealing with PTSD, to help those deployed to have access to religious material, and to be an active support group to those soldiers and their families if needed. This thoughtlessness is what started our friendship. Being a veteran himself, his drive and love for his fellow soldiers and veterans is easily seen. He's a great person, caring, loving, incredibly sarcastic, funny, witty, and the best friend anyone could ask for.

My whole family! Well, on my Mom's side... These are the best friends I have. They've never failed to be there when I need them. I know, it's the cliché, sappy answer to anything with family, but it's true. They drive me absolutely crazy, but I love them!

Challenge Day 2

Day 2: The meaning behind my blog name.


A few years ago my aunt and her kids came up to visit for part of the summer. Her youngest son had the hardest time saying my name right, so it came out "E-why" instead. That only lasted a few months before he learned how to say it right. I thought it was cute, so I made it stick. Since then, my aunt had a daughter. Her daughter has trouble with pronouncing a lot of words, so it's easier for her to call me "E-y" too. So, what was a cute speech impediment has now turned into the only other name I will absentmindedly answer to!

Now, for the "E-y, E-y Oh!" part... For years, my parents have teased me with the "Old MacDonald" song with my name. Well, backing up even farther than that. I was teased for as long as I can remember for my last name, and the kids would always taunt me with "Old MacDonald". I'm not complaining now, but it was a little traumatic back then for me. I was a very shy kid. (I still am a shy person.) Anyway, when my family first heard Brendan (my aunt's youngest son) call me "E-y", they thought it was funny and that it reminded them of the song, so they would sing it and call me "E-y, E-y Oh!"

The reason I chose that for my blog name is because it makes me smile and reminds me of the innocence of childhood. My little cousins and family still call me "E-y" (and other variations thereon), and I wouldn't have it any other way! My future nieces and nephews WILL call me "Uncle E-y"; they really don't have any other choice there. Haha!

First post!

So, I've been meaning to actually post something here for ages, but I've just been neglecting it up until now. After scanning other blogs, reading my sister's blog, and just sitting back today, I decided to do something about it! Whether or not anyone will read this is up to all of you out there, but I'm doing this for me!

A couple weeks ago I was talking with a friend about blogging. She gave me a good idea - Do a 30 day challenge at first. So, that's what I'm going to do. I'm kind of stealing some of these ideas for the 30 days from my sister and various other blogs I've read, so I apologize if I'm not doing it "correctly". Here goes nothing...

Day 1: Upload a recent photo of yourself and 15 interesting facts about yourself.

* In the photo: My sister, Keira; my father; and myself. We spent the New Year in Glamis with my Aunt and Uncle, and their family. My mom and other sister, Makenna, weren't able to make it down with us that trip.

1. I'm the oldest of three kids. Myself (24), Makenna (20), and Keira (16).

2. I graduated high school in 2005. It wasn't anything special. In fact, I BARELY graduated. I was a great student, all of my teachers loved me! I just got very lazy my last semester in high school. None of you need to know what my GPA was though...

3. Though I barely graduated high school, I proved myself a good student because scouts from BYU and the UofU came to my door offering full tuition for 4 years if I would play cello for them. I was dumb and turned both of them down to go to Snow College instead. Like I said, it wasn't a wise decision.

4. My ideal outside temperature range is the low-40s to mid-90s.

5. I love button-up t-shirts! I always have.

6. I'm a stubborn person by nature. However, even though I'm stubborn, I still like to hear all sides to an argument, and I will hear you out. Even though you're going to be wrong, because I'm stubborn and I'm always right. :-P

7. I have a unique sense of humor.

8. I've played cello for 14 years. I've taught private lessons for 6 of those years.

9. I love "The Twilight Zone".

10. I want to be a musical ethnologist when I grow up!

11. I have the greatest family! They are very loving, patient, understanding, caring and thoughtful. Though I've dropped a few massive bombshells on them in the past few years, they still love me regardless. They've been there for me throughout the best and the worst. They've supported me, guarded me, had my back, nudged me when I needed the nudging, love who I love, and it all means the world to me!

12. So, I'm going to be bald by 35.

13. I can't grow a full beard, but I can grow a wicked mustache and goatee though!

14. Walnuts give me hives down my throat to my stomach (yes, I WILL go to the hospital if you try to trick me into eating them), cantaloupe makes me gag, cauliflower tastes like dirt, and watermelon makes me burp. But I can't get enough watermelon during Summer!

15. Though I have issues with the aforementioned foods, I'm not a picky eater at all!