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January 30, 2007

Transition...

I'm in transition right now. I'll be graduating in May and don't know where I'll end up. I feel like dreams have been let go. It seems like God is leading me down roads that I never expected...and I'm scared. Making commitments means I have to leave other plans behind, for the time being anyway.

I came to Covenant with sure expectations that were eventually taken away from me. Since then, God has led me down a path that has been really good, but tough to keep following...and with no idea what would be waiting on me at the finish line. I would never in a million years take away what I have learned and become since I've been here, and yet I guess I'm a little dissapointed with what I've got at this point. People say that it's not the destination, but the journey that's important. It's hard to remember that in a time like this. Thank God that I have His sovereignty to rest in. If I'm honest, there are times when I have little faith in God and that He will take care of me. I ask the same question that King David does in Psalms, "How long, O Lord, will you forget me forever?"

It would be ridiculous to compare my trials and tribulations to that of Moses, but in a sense, I identify with him. I feel like I've been walking in the desert for years and am scared that I'll never get to go where I'm headed, whatever that is.

As hokey as it may seem...the works of Christ give me hope. He did not come for those that have it all together (which is actually no one) but for the lost, out-of-control, and those, like me, who are still in the waiting line. I am so glad to serve a God who knows the human experience well. He hears my prayers and He identifies with my fears and frustrations. He's more than a living sacrifice, He's an older brother who has walked before us and felt the pain, hurt, sadness, and insecurities of life...therefore, He comforts me in this time of transition.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 6:32 PM | Comments (2)

January 29, 2007

AAAAHHH!

Well, in case you can't tell, I'm a little aggitated. AAAAAHHHH! Anyway, I've been dealing with the fun world of waiting on operators to answer their "+$#%! phone...AAAAHHH!

Before I go any further in my small rant of frustration, I'd like to let you know that all I need to do is change my mailing address with my insurance company. What in the world?! There is no place on their website to do this. So, I typed in 'change address' into their incredibly incompotent search engine, which gave me a bunch of responses for where their company buildings are moving. Then I type in 'change customer address' but there is nothing.

I then make the risky move of calling the company's 800 number with hopes of talking to an actual person. Of course, after putting my ID number in 3 times in a row and it not working, the line then went to a machine that had me waiting for 20 minutes for no one to answer the phone. To say that I am hating them all right now is an understatement.

We live in the most impersonal place in the history of the world. It is crazy! All I need to do is change my mailing address. I hate the corporate world of insurance, they overcharge us for health care that we may or may not use and then if we use too much they drop us. They really care about humanity, don't they? OK, I'm starting to go too far. Sorry for the rant. I will officially stop now, have a great day!

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 6:50 PM | Comments (4)

January 23, 2007

Felicitacion por Penelope Cruz!

Hola Amigos!

I want to give congrads to Penelope Cruz for her Oscar Nomination for Volver. The movie was written and directed by the Spanish director, Pedro Almodovar.

I went to see this film last week with some friends from work and really enjoyed the experience. It was a film of forgiveness, sacrifice, humanity, and love. Cruz's character, Raimunda, makes great strides in her performance as a mother determined to help her daughter in a very difficult situation, to say the least. As the plot thickens in her relationship with her child; things get almost as difficult in her relationship with her estranged mother. It was an ironic film that while dealing with tougher than life issues still had a lot of heart and humor, in a way that only Almodovar could do.

I remember when I lived in Spain one of my friends, Diego, asked me if I had ever seen a movie by Pedro Alomodovar. At that point I had never even heard of the guy, which surprised him, and quite honestly, aggravated him as well...for Pedro is one of the biggest directors to come out of Spain since, well, ever.

It was a pleasure to see a movie and feel connected to a group of people and place that I call a second home, Spain. It was great to hear castellano spoken with that 'th' accent that I love. All that to say, it would be incredible to see Penelope pick up the award for a muy bueno performance!

Felicidades Penelope!!! 0-Ay, O-Ay, O-Ay, O-Ay, O-Ay, O-Ay!

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 12:14 PM

January 22, 2007

Coffee! Coffee! Coffee!

This past weekend I went to the Midwest Regional Barista Competition held in Kansas City, MO...or was it KS? I can't remember. Anyway...

I had no idea what to expect...would there be people walking around wired up on caffeine? How many baristas would there? Would there be much discussion on whether a shade-grown bean makes for good espresso? However...

What I found was a group of people who love their coffee, appreciate it's diverse forms, and are always designing new drinks to wet the pallete of coffee-lovers everywhere.

I must admit, when we first arrived at the venue of the event I felt like I was in the middle of one of those documentaries on the Food Network where they film the goings-on of an ice cream or gingerbread house competition. I knew these people were serious when we passed by a car that had "COFFEE" for his license tag. We then entered the building to find a group of people who are all about the hard stuff, I mean coffee beans.

The basics of the competition are as follows: They each get 15 minutes to prepare 4 shots of espresso, 4 cappuccinos, and 4 signiture drinks that they design themselves...there are 4 judges, thus, 4 of each. The signiture drinks were very diverse...coconut milk, thyme, honey, chocolate...the list goes on. Everyone there was watching quietly as each barista prepared their various drinks...after each part was done the audience clapped and screamed for them. It was pretty funny, but yet (I can't believe I'm going to say this), it gave me a motivation and passion for coffee that wasn't there before. It was great to learn more about coffee, it's people, if you will, and to feel like I was living out my own little Christopher Guest movie.

It was also a great time to take full advantage of incredible pun opportunities, as follows: some of the baristas hit the judges with their best shot, I had a cappuccino that I liked a latte, some of the contestants were e-steamed to froth their milk, and one of the competitors was very nervous and looked like he wanted out of the competition, but as I explained to some of the people I was sitting with...it was too late, he couldn't milk himself out of it now.

Well, I can honestly say that I am a part of the cult of coffee lovers everywhere, seriously, since I've been back I've done nothing but drink coffee. You might think that's not a very healthy thing to do, but with the exception of the shakes, my heart beating quickly, my hyperactivity being somewhat hard to control and the lining of my stomach deteriorating, it really hasn't been that bad.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 1:51 PM | Comments (5)

January 18, 2007

New Year's Resolution

1. to post on my blog more often

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 6:19 AM | Comments (2)

January 17, 2007

That's What Friends Are For

"For good times, and bad times, I'll be on your side forever more"

Mmm, can you feel the emotion exuding from Dion Warwick's lips...amazing. I can't even take how emotional I get just listening to that song. I was thinking at working the other day...I have several friends. It's good to have friends that love you well. They support, they love, laugh and affirm and hold you accountable to staying true to who you are.

I have that with people at school, church, roommates, life, and work...I mean, except for a certain Puerta Ricana.

The funny thing is...Dion Warwick knew that I was going to write this blog entry right when I did, and she knew the words I was going to use; she's psychic.

Posted by Nathan Gemayel at 1:23 PM | Comments (2)