Photographic Dictionary [G]

[G] is for Gravity

grav⋅i⋅ty  [grav-i-tee] – noun

1.the force of attraction by which terrestrial bodies tend to fall toward the center of the earth.
2.heaviness or weight.
3.serious or critical nature: He seemed to ignore the gravity of his illness.
4.serious or dignified behavior; dignity; solemnity: to preserve one's gravity.
5.lowness in pitch, as of sounds.

Photographic Dictionary [F]

[F] is for Foundation

foun⋅da⋅tion  [foun-dey-shuhn] – noun
1. the basis or groundwork of anything.
2. the natural or prepared ground or base on which some structure rests.
3. the lowest division of a building, wall, or the like, usually of masonry and partly or wholly below the surface of the ground.
4. the act of founding, setting up, establishing, etc.
5. the state of being founded.

finally

just booked my plane ticket to go to nashville for labor day weekend. SO stoked to finally spend some time in this city and decide once and for all whether it will be my permanent residence. so so excited.

how short we are.

i've been thinking a lot about life and death lately. a couple of weeks ago one of my roommates came home pretty torn up. he volunteers with high school students in the same ministry i used to work in. he was hanging out with a couple of freshman guys one night (i believe they were both 14), and they happened upon the scene of a motorcycle accident that had occurred just moments beforehand. they were literally the first on the scene, along with one other car, and the other motorcyclist the guy had been riding with. though he wasn't sure what happened, apparently the guy riding just wandered out of his lane and clipped the curb of the median, being thrown immediately from his bike. he wasn't wearing any protective gear. my roommate of course got out of his car to try and help and see what was going on. he said he and the guy from the other car had to help flip this guy over because he was literally choking to death on his own blood from the internal injuries he had sustained in the crash. of course they had to be very careful because who knows what kind of spinal injuries he may have sustained as well. so here is my roommate, and two 14 year old about to be freshman in high school, just watching this poor man drown in a pool of his own blood waiting for an ambulance to arrive. as soon as the ambulance arrived they took off because my roommate felt it was prudent to keep the kids from having to see anymore than what they already had. and they were pretty shaken up by it. who wouldn't be?

so after getting home and telling us this story, it's just been pressing on my heart as of late. the guy died after being airlifted to a hospital. it's just crazy to me how little control we have over our circumstances. i mean, yes it could be argued that this guy was taking way too many extra risks in just riding a motorcycle, and especially riding with no protective equipment. but that's not what i'm talking about. i can guarantee that an accident like that is not how he was planning on going out. no one plans for that sort of thing. but it happens. all the time. i think especially living in america, we tend to put this protective bubble around ourselves, believing ourselves impervious to these sorts of tragedies. when we're not. safety is such an illusion. and it's an illusion that i would be willing to say most people spend their entire lives chasing after. what a waste! to spend all of your time chasing the idea of something that doesn't actually exist. having spent a lot of time traveling to third world countries and hanging out with people who have no idea what the illusion of safety even is, i have to say it's such a refreshing concept. no one i've met in afghanistan or the dominican republic or mexico spends their time thinking about how to make their lives safer and more convenient. they just worry about living. about spending time with the people they care about and making the most of what they have. what would things be like here if people started to rearrange their priorities so that they weren't at the top of their own list? what could we change? what could we do about the sad state the rest of the world is in?

we have an entire country freaking out about an economic recession right now. even though if you've taken even the most basic course in macroeconomics (which is a prerequisite for graduation at most high schools in the country now), you would know that recessions are an inevitable part of the economic cycle. it's part of how a free market economy works. it goes up and down and up and down. but like i said, everyone here has prioritized their lives so that they are the most important part, and god forbid you take a paycut and make $50,000 this year instead of $75,000. something like 70% of the world makes and lives on less than $1 american per day. and yet they're still alive. still breathing. no thanks to us of course.

i'm doing a lot of rambling, and i apologize. i guess what i'm trying to say is this: life is way too short to spend all of your time thinking about yourself. there is way too much hurt and pain in the world, and selfishness and greed aren't doing anything. i'm reminded of jesus' command to "store up treasures for yourself in heaven, not on earth where moth and rust destroy." because in the end, no matter how much money you save and no matter how secure you make your house, when you die, you die. and none of that gets to go with you. why not spend your time and money making a difference for the people that you share the world with, instead of piling up a bunch of stuff that's just going to decay and mean nothing to you after you're gone.

like i said, i've been thinking a lot lately. sometimes i wish i wasn't the only one thinking.

Photographic Dictionary [E]

[E] is for Element.

el⋅e⋅ment  [el-uh-muhnt] – noun
1. a component or constituent of a whole or one of the parts into which a whole may be resolved by analysis: Bricks and mortar are elements of every masonry wall.
2. a natural habitat, sphere of activity, environment, etc.: to be in one's element; Water is the element of fish.
3. any group of people singled out within a larger group by identifiable behavior patterns, common interests, ethnic similarities, etc.: He worried that the protest rally would attract the radical element.
4. one of the substances, usually earth, water, air, and fire, formerly regarded as constituting the material universe.

Photographic Dictionary [D]

[D] is for Dissipate.

dis⋅si⋅pate  [dis-uh-peyt] verb

1. to become scattered or dispersed; be dispelled; disintegrate: The sun shone and the mist dissipated.
2. to indulge in extravagant, intemperate, or dissolute pleasure.

RIP ACB

as cities burn broke up today. there goes any chance music had for redemption. RIP music. and RIP ACB.

Photographic Dictionary [C]

[C] is for Contact.

con⋅tact  [kon-takt]
–noun
1. the act or state of touching; a touching or meeting, as of two things or people.
2. immediate proximity or association.
3. an acquaintance, colleague, or relative through whom a person can gain access to information, favors, influential people, and the like.
4. Electricity. a junction of electric conductors, usually metal, that controls current flow, often completing or interrupting a circuit.
5. Geology. the interface, generally a planar surface, between strata that differ in lithology or age.
6. Medicine/Medical. a person who has lately been exposed to an infected person.
7. Sociology. a condition in which two or more individuals or groups are placed in communication with each other.

ramblin man

I've always said insomnia is a terrible thing to waste, and I'm sticking to that. It's Sunday night and I've been tossing and turning for the last hour and a half. Fabulous. Tomorrow will be a great day at work I'm sure. I've just got a lot on my mind right now. This weekend I got to host some awesome awesome dudes in a band called Amarna Reign at my house. They're friends of a friend from Indiana and needed a place to crash for a couple days on their tour with The Showdown. It was great to hang out with them, but gosh it made me miss being in a band SO much. Being broke as shit, eating shit for food, and sleeping in a shitty van. Every day. And it's all I want to do. It's actually mind boggling. And right now there is actually possibility of being back in a band in the future. Which is crazy to think about. There are actually two good possibilities on the horizon. The problem is that I'm going to have to pick which one I want to pursue, and the one I want to pursue more also has a good chance of ending with both possibilities not working out, because of some timing issues. Timing has never really been my thing anyway. Sigh. It's just a lot on my plate right now. And I keep praying and praying and I'm not really getting much in the way of direction. And that's what is eating my mind up tonight. Either way, it looks like Indiana could be a lot closer than Nashville. But then again the girl of my dreams is in Nashville, even though she doesn't know it. Sigh. I'm rambling. I need an ambien, or a night cap, of the Jack Daniel's variety. Since the pharmacy is most likely closed and I don't have a prescription, I'm probably going to go with the latter. Good night. (hopefully).

[Posted with iBlogger from my iPhone]

Photographic Dictionary [B]

I was a little behind in posting [A], so we're already on to [B]. here you go.



[B] is for Burger

burg⋅er  [bur-ger]
–noun
a hamburger.