Entries this day: YACretreat

YACretreat

midnight Friday 26 May 2000

Just arrived. Almost drove the entire way here; Scott made it 425 miles on one tank of gas!!! I don't know if it was because it was mostly highway driving, or that I just changed the spark plugs, (or combination of both) or what.

We were essentially out of gas once we made it to I-30. I navigated past the knots of freeway interchanges, then exited for gas once I was sure we'd have an easy time getting back on the freeway.

Security guard was talking to a guy when I walked barefootedly past them and gave the cashier my credit card. Got gas and the security guard was alone when I walked barefootedly back in to sign the receipt and stuff.

"Can't go in without shoes."

"They have my credit card; I can't pay unless I go in and sign it."

I had just driven 4.5 hours straight, had already walked in barefoot while he was talking. I wasn't in much of a mood to fuck with him; I'm glad he relatively easily 'allowed' me in.

The cashier was glad too; my card wasn't being accepted by the machine.

"Hey hey c'mere c'mere" he beckoned. "Your card it ain't going through. You got any other way you can pay for this?"

"I got cash."

"Cool"

He was a tall Jamaican guy, and was pretty funny when he gave me my receipt. He was all, "be sure to keep the receipt cause if your bank is trippin' you can show them this and say, 'hey fool I paid!'"

"Thanks!"

The rest of the 30-few miles to the church was much less eventful.

- - - -

5pm Saturday 27 May 2000

After meeting for 5 hours we went outside for a frisbee break. Tossed around an ultimate disc and a golf disc. Taught Mark how to throw a disc a bit better and I tossed a couple of long as I could throws to Sean and Austin down the field.

It started raining, so Mark went inside. We kept playing in the pouring rain, and Laura and Elizabeth went down to the swings to swing in the rain. More golf disc tossing and then the girls went to lay on the concrete, which they discovered was super warm!!

Perfect giggles and fun we all lay on the concrete for the most memorable blissful spiritual perfect fun moment lying on concrete warm and cold rain. Steam wafted around us lik mystery fog. Austin discoverd that by shielding the light around his eyes, he could imagine he was snorkling in muddy water. Muddy water over concrete?

Russ and Mark came out to see how/what we were doing. They weren't persuaded to join us. They left us giggling on the concrete, marveling in the dichotomy between the warm surface and cold rain.

Finally got up and began trudging back toward the church. Halfway back, we met Mark and Russ, who had a camera!! We ran back and laughed at the dichotomy of having trudged back toward work, but then running back to lay in the water.

- - - -

6:40pm

"Hahaha!! We cooked it in the tea kettle!"

- - - -

The Matrix was started on VCR and I watched a bit until I had to go pick up Katie from work. Mark asked if I wanted company; we had a great conversation about UUism and district stuff and then shifted toward our personal beliefs about God and stuff.

We basically have the same or similar beliefs about stuff: God could not have an ego; Jesus was a spiritual guy who greatly communicated his spirituality.

We agree that he was probably a guy, and did all kinds of cool stuff, but the "I am the one and only" is where we have to draw the line.

- - - -

Got Katie and during conversation on the way back, mentioned Balmorrhea (sp) state park, and she was all, "That's it!!!" She and her dad have been trying to remember the name of the cool park they visited some years ago.

How wonderful to have the Synchronicity bring her that answer.

- - - -

Matrix was almost over when we got back. At the end of the movie, I complained about the timing when the Sentinels were attacking the ship and then just *quit* for 3 minutes while Trinity proclaimed her love for Neo. Such bullcrap! I announced my much better ending:

Neo is being chased through the building as the Sentinels are attacking the ship. Trinity is all, "you can't use the EMP until he is back." Morpheus goes, "he'll make it; he is the one."

Neo bursts through door 301 (or whatever it was) and get shot just as the Sentinels are shredding through the ship.

(What I have described above is pretty much how the movie goes; below is different)

The ship is being shredded, Neo's EKG lines go flat as he is shot and killed by the Agents. Morpheus has no choice; pushes the EMP button and kills the Sentinels. Neo is apparently lost.

Trinity kneels beside Neo's body in the real world, proclaims her feelings for him; how she's not afraid.

Meanwhile, the Agents check Neo's pulse. "He's gone." They leave his body in a heap.

Trinity kisses Neo in the real world. His body wakes up in The Matrix. Neo has the big fight with the bad guys, stops the bullets, blows up the Bad Guy. He closes his eyes, vanishes from The Matrix, wakes up in the real world.

Trinity witnesses his revival and they embrace and all is good.

See, if Neo could control the Matrix, he doesn't need a *phone* to move in and out of the Matrix. He just does it.

- - - -

10:17pm Saturday 27 May 2000

Meeting is resumed; I just typed the first section of this entry about driving up here and getting gas.

5:45 am Sunday 28 May 2000

I went to bed after watching the first part of Grosse Pointe Blank (I think the opening sequence is the best part of the movie)..

Woke up at 5:40am, heard laughter from the YRUU room. I thought "cool - they're still awake," and got up to see if maybe the group wanted to play a game of Silent Football. Surprised to see Mark was still awake!! (Turns out he had just gotten up at his normal time. (Eeek!))

Silent Football was fun; Mark had never previously played and he did very well. (Laura had read the rules on the ~sauron website; she did quite well too.)

(While I was typing this entry we were discussing how SF started as a drinking game. Austin goes, yeah almost all games started out as drinking games. I lied, "yeah - like basketball.. Used to be a drinking game - when they finished a basket full of bottles of beer, they put the basket on the wall and would try to throw the beer bottles into it. It used to be called "basketbottle" but there was too much broken glass everywhere, so they just used balls." No one called me a big fat liar hahaha.)

Back in reality, I enjoyed Mark's synopsis of the Shrotem / Shrug rule. (So there's not two defensives moves, but two ways to express the same move.) Precisely. I may use that. Oh - I also made up a fun way of describing part of the rules...

"There are two aspects of the game. One is the movement of the sacred football, the other is discussion of the movement of the sacred football. There are two ways to gain penance points. One is to make an error during movement of the sacred football. The other is to make an error during the discussion of the movement of the sacred football."

Also honored Wende with a new Customary: "Customary disinfecting wipe!" (motion of wiping one's mouth with sleeve)

Mr Austin and Mr The Bibbster were most wacked in their games (Mr Austin moreso) Very fun. Ms Laura and Mr Mark did well too. I already said that. I'm tired.. good night again.

- - -

4:30pm Sunday 28 May 2000

Woke up around 10am and played a game of mental clue with Elizabeth and Austin. Amazingly enough, I guessed Elizabeth's choices on the first try. That's the second time I've done that... The other was at one of the Northwood's retreats... New Year's 1999 I think.

Cleaned up and left for home around 11am.

On the way home, I discovered that I had left my clear plastic red clipboard there. DOH!!! I thankfully expect I will be able to get it at least by OKC rally next weekend.

PS: I have just discovered that I can get a palmtop computer thing with a full sized keyboard. I'm gonna get one so I can write journal entries on the road super duper easily. Yay!! permalink