Music Monday!

john here, ive decided that every monday im going to review a new album or an album that I already love. music is extremely important to me (and evan who will probable also do some reviews) its something im super passionate about. aesthetics in general are fascinating to me, they have some sort of intrinsic morality to them, like there is good music, paintings, poetry and there is also art that is bad. thats kinda crazy, it makes sense though since God is a pretty damn good artist.

this week, the cave singers: welcome joy


the cave singers are an incredible folk band that started as a side project and has since progressed into a serious act. welcome joy is the band's second full-length that came out in 2009 (they have a newer album out called "no witch" that is pretty good as well.) pitchfork gave the album a 5.1 but honestly who do they give a positive review to anyway? it is full of catchy, twangy, mellow banjo fingerwork. peter quirk, the lead singer, sort of sings behind the beat and has a set of wonderful, raspy pipes that are (according to evan and I agree) very deer tick-esque. listen to this album: while sitting on a porch with a drink or while daydreaming about summer time and open fields.



check em out, lemme know what you think

Poetry

Doug's last post got me thinking, and I would like to write poetry to one or two members of our household, due to the fact that apparently I am "negative" or "condescending" or "get major facts wrong" in my previous few posts. These poems may be boring, and you may not want to read them. They are mainly for my roommates. But if you want to take a glance, it'd be cool too. I mean it is on the internet now...

Joe Joe Joe
You have the strength to carry a hundred pound bow
You lift me up when I'm feeling low
You understand my struggles and help me grow
I do not think we've ever had a row
You are my best friend, you fine fellow.

JohnCarr JohnCarr JohnCarr
its amazing to look how we've come so far
from the same hometown in Chesapeake
to sharing a bathroom where we both take a leak
what an amazing adventure it has been in Willard
I am glad that we have never played Billard(s)
You're heart is good and you're will is true.
You get out and do what you're meant to do.
Keep going my brother, an inspiration to me.
And just like Sam, you're pretty darn free.

Jackson my roommate whom I love
You've been my friend sent from above.
and i'm not just talking about where you sleep
but the place in my heart that you keep
I wish I could tell you that I'm glad we're birds of a feather
but words don't express how happy I am that we live together.

Sammy Sam Sam
when we're together my heart goes bam bam
that last line sucked and sounded real dumb
when you wrestle me to the ground my face goes numb
You are so free my wily friend
that means you don't hold back the love within
you let it loose as you see fit.
Your heart is aligned with God's above
when I am lazy you give me a gentle shove.

Smile4Ev
is your license plate
yet multiple meanings this could take
does it mean I'm meant to smile?
or that it will last a long while?
Evan my friend, you're one I can trust.
When I need to admit my heart is not just.

Jeremiah my smartest friend
like a rock you stand till the end.
unperturbed by the gusting winds,
a picture of modesty in camera lens.
You love us all so very well,
a servants heart we can all tell.
I love you Jeremy, I don't say it enough.
Thanks for sitting across from me.
At dinner.

Dougie Doug Doug
My bearded brother
when we moved in we didn't really know one another
oh how that is changed in six short months
I just found out nothing rhymes with months.
You lead me well, toward fine wisdom
never judging, an honest vision
you speak the truth thats hard to hear
and I promise to always have a listening ear.

I'm sorry if these rhymes were stupid, but I've been feeling bad if I have been saying negative things. That is not what this blog is for. I also apologize for not being deep more often. It's so much easier to write a funny blog about pretty much nothing than than to go deep in thought and be vulnerable. I promise to try harder at that. As for the weekend that John wrote about, it was great. I went in negative and came out real positive, especially after pulling up to sixty degree weather in the Burg. One thing I thought a lot about this weekend was...

Processes. It dawned on me that God cares more that we are obedient than that we bear fruit. Not that he doesn't want fruit to be born. But rather that we put our whole selves into it. Don't hold back. God can handle the ends. He will make them work. But He wants us on this earth for a reason. Death happens, its inevitable. But while we're here, don't go through the motions! Don't wait for something better that's gonna happen down the road. Live for now. Go into everything 100 percent. It may suck. It may be tiring. It may piss you off sometimes. But ten years from now, I'm not gonna remember watching a movie on the couch, or sitting around doing nothing. I'm gonna remember sitting on a porch in Rockbridge praying with my boy Jonny. I'm gonna remember playing around with the guys, and laughing till I cry. I'm gonna remember getting up early to eat McDonalds and talk about life with Jon, and playing basketball with high school guys till I want to throw up from exhaustion. It's the processes God wants. He wants our hearts focused and energized. As the Avett Brothers say, decide what to be, and go be it.

Sorry this was so long, I'll try to write less poetry next time.

<3's
James C. Harris.

why are prophecies always in verse?

So I was watching this animated version of 'the Hobbit' the other day which I have loved since my childhood. It really is great, Joe can attest. But what this one part made me think. During the movie they would put the poems/songs from the book to music, funny '70s style music, and sing it as part of the soundtrack. And one such song was part of the prophecy of the Mountain King's return:
"The streams shall run in gladness,
The lakes shall shine and burn,
All sorrow fail and sadness,
At the Mountain King's return!"
I thought it was interesting how it actually looked to have the prophecy fulfilled (like and unlike real prophecy because Tolkien wrote the prophecy and the fulfillment) with a dying dragon falling burning into the lake, etc. I also thought, "Wouldn't it have been plainer to say 'When Thorin, grandson of the old King under the Mountain, returns to the Lonely Mountain, the dragon will be slain above Laketown and things will return to cleaness and happiness'?"

Or consider this one, from the Lord of the Rings:
"All that is gold does not glitter,
not all those who wander are lost;
the old that is strong does not wither,
deep roots are not reached by the frost.
From the ashes a fire shall be woken,
a light from the shadows shall spring;
renewed shall be blade that was broken,
the crownless again shall be king."
If you know the story, work out what it was like for this to be fulfilled.

And then I got to thinking about some stuff I'd heard describing poetry, how it can capture subtleties which prose cannot, and how a girl would rather you read her a poem you wrote about her than a list of her attributes and habits. And I remembered the Bible, how a lot of prophecy in there is written poetically. This was my conclusion:
The subtleties of a poem about what is going to happen in the future are easier to live out within the dance of a God who has written the end already and myself being free to do as I choose. For Frodo, about which there was a prophecy that a halfling would carry Isildur's Bane, he could actually live within the poem. If on the other hand, he had read Tolkien's books and then tried to live his life, he would probably go crazy. And so would we, if prophecies that we lived out were written as history.

On still the other hand, Jesus sometimes spoke prophecy like history: "I will be handed over to the Gentiles; beaten, mocked, spit on, and killed. Then three days later I will rise from the dead."
And his friends said to themselves, "Hmm, what does this poem mean?"

me me me

hello everyone, its pouring rain right now and I supposedly have class in 45 minutes. blacksburg weather is so gross in the winter. this is all supposed to turn to ice/snow by later today too, of course. anyways, a few corrections from the last post: stefanie is not in costa rica... she's in the dominican republic working as an art teacher at doulos discovery school in jarabacoa. she loves it there and is with awesome Godly people doing awesome things for the sake of the Kingdom, I am very encouraged by her and cannot wait to visit in march, also I am "turning over a new leaf" (as we've all been calling it) this semester and so are most of the other guys in the house. this has nothing to do with new years or any resolution because I think that new years resolutions are stupid. we all had a chance over break to look at how we had been living at the end last semester and honestly it was filth. We ate crappy food, none of us did anything active, and honestly we were all pretty negative towards each other and about life really. so yes, jackson and I are hitting the gym again, we are all trying to eat healthier, I'm actually not running... I freaking hate running in the cold so I'm swimming three days a week until it gets warm enough to run.

the change I am most excited about though, is loving one another better. I have been learning a lot about Love lately. all different types. affection, friendship, eros (or sexual love and attraction between the sexes.) I told the guys in my house at family dinner that I think the way I love people is directly related to my relationship with the Father and my selflessness. I am so selfish. I am obsessed with myself, college life seems to foster selfishness. what am I going to eat today, how am I feeling, worrying about my classes, my grades, I need time to myself. Me me me. when stef and I went to church together in kansas at vintage church, a guy named Tom Brawner (ex younglife staff from texas) spoke about selfishness and how it affects relationships. he made a profound argument: when we stop thinking about ourselves so much and spend time with God, we actually bring the Kingdom of Heaven into our relationships.(you can listen to the sermon here: http://vintagelawrence.com/getting-back-on-track-relationally/ ) libby ryder (my dear friend with lymphoma who I have mentioned before) shared this insight with me: we simply dont have the the time to hold back from loving people. through her experience with cancer she has learned that loving people is incredibly important and that life is incredibly fleeting, why would we ever hold back? Jesus says we are to love others the way we love ourselves, that's nuts. what if we thought of other people as much as we think about ourselves? what if we loved people without expectation of anything in return? That would be crazy, that would be bringing Heaven crashing into earth, that is where Jesus says life is found. so, may we at the willard house carry out our new vision, may we love each other as we love ourselves, and may we begin to break out of our selfish shells in order to live the life that God has planned for us.

grace and peace,
jc

ps : many of us will be headed to rockbridge alum springs this weekend for our regional prayer overnight, it should be awesome. also, we cant wait to see matt hypes, the only person we know who regularly reads this blog.. haha

New Semester

I apologize for my brief time not contributing to this blog. I have learned my lesson and will continue to document the day to day happenings in the house. As a new semester has started, the men of Willard have been up to new, and occasionally exciting, activities.

Evan, the studious ba that he is, started off the semester with a new job. Every Monday through Thursday, Evan strands himself on campus and forces himself to work from 8 am till around 3. So far the new trend has paid dividends, though no grades have been assigned, Evan feels the benefits, "well, umm, I guess in words that would be appropriate for the blog.. you could say..um... well it has been working out swell so far and I'm really liking it." -Evan Underwood, from laying in his bed about to sleep, 10:22 p.m., Sunday, January 23rd.

Sam also has new study habits this semester, through an error in his class planning (or a well planned scheme at consistent four day weekends,) Sam only has classes on Tuesday and Thursday. However these are five hour and fifteen minute classes back to back. I personally would love to spread that much anxiety out over my week, but Sam's plan has been to cram in as much education into the shortest time possible. "It's been good so far. Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays are definitely my favorite days of the week. I try to pass by Tuesdays and Thursdays in a haze of coffee and Stumbleupon.com." -James Harris imitating what he imagines Sam would say about his class schedule, because I am too lazy to go to the basement and talk to Samuel.

Jackson has finally achieved religion major status (snaps for Jackson)He now considers himself the spiritual father of the house (false) and is attempting to, I believe, tutor me in Religion in America. He keeps trying to get me to do the assignments with him and read at the same time as him. Im not down.

Doug has had the exact opposite schedule as Evan thus far. Doug is no longer a student here at Virginia Tech, thanks to four and a half years of hard work and four and a half years of grueling tuition. Doug now spends his days quietly around the house, reading and cleaning mainly, running some. At nights he goes and works at Blacksburg's favorite restaurant "Boudreaux's" Though in all honesty I have not eaten there, I have been in the kitchen and I can attest to its cleanliness.

Joe has been attending classes this semester, which has been weird for all of us. Joe also works out a lot this semester, and hanging out with his gf Claire. They tried to go on a double date to a beach music dance in Roanoke the other night with Sam and Eliza, but apparently got thrown out because they did not have canes and/or were under the age of 65 and therefore could not get reduced price coffee from McDonalds afterwards with their other dancin peeps.

Jeremy has gotten off to a fast start this semester with his Engineering classes. I do not know what Jeremy does during the day. I expect nothing good. He has gotten better at Smash, and has been in a funk ever since Michael Vick threw an interception to end Philly's football season.

JohnCarr rides his bike to campus and has attempted running recently in his plan to "turn over a new leaf" We haven't actually taken bets on when this leaf will turn back over permanently to its anti-exercise state, but I know the idea has crossed my mind. John also has been skypin Steph alot, shes in Costa Rica this semester, and John helps her bone up on her spanish. Actually they speak English, but I figure Spanish practice would be cool too. John, you should consider that.

Myself? kickin it old school. Takin history classes and practicing bball with the East Mont Team. I miss my youth where I could run for extended amounts of time without the urge to vomit everywhere. Additionally, Allie and I had a nice date the other night in front of the fire in the Willard house. If you have never spent an evening alone in front of a fire listening to the Avett brothers with your girlfriend, I recommend it.

Peace, Love, and Willard,
James Crockett Harris III


P.S. Joe and I have an intramural basketball game on Tuesday night at 7:30 in War Memorial with Caleb Fleming and Andrew Nicholas. If you're looking for a high-flying dunk fest, don't come. But if you want to see what an intermediate level intramural basketball game looks like with slightly out of shape players, please show up. And make t-shirts.

happy 1st day!

Just want to wish everyone a good day in class today.
Work hard this semester, but don't work as if it all depends on you.

Back to the Burg

It is my last night in Chesapeake. I lay in my bed quite unable to sleep and I figured I'd write a little bloggy blog to guess what all my housemates are doing right about now, as we all prepare to head back.

Well some of us are back, but I'll still guess.

Doug, Evan, Jackson and Jeremy- Warm and safe back in the Willard home, they probably played a few games of super smash bros this evening before retiring to their respective beds. Jackson most likely cried himself to sleep without a roommate. Evan probably relished in the fact that John was not watching a surfing video late into the night. Doug slept in the basement. Jeremy enjoyed another night of blissful slumber in his own room.

John- Hung out at the house known as the "Orphanage" before going off with Eric "Mezz" Messmore, Alex "Gypsy" Daiber, Chris "Nacho" Kennedy, and Josh "engaged" Henderson. They were going to see a band, or something.

Joe- still bro'in out in northern VA, Joe is most likely off at his school's outdoor basketball court. All alone with nothing but a ball in his hands, Joe wistfully thinks about his future, past, and present.

Sam- Whereabouts unknown.

James- in my bed currently, in about nine hours I'm packin up and heading to Johns. I told JC about three to four times to have his stuff packed by the time I get to his house. He however kept doing that stupid little two finger gesture and telling me not to worry. So after I wait twenty minutes for his bum self to pack up, we'll head west. What lies out there for us? who knows. But one thing we do know is this. The Willard boys will be reunited as a whole on Sunday. And what a glorious reunion it shall be.

<3's
James C. Harris III esquire.

2011

What better time to write about a new year than on 1/11/11. Sure, possibly 1/1/11 but that was over a week ago, and I can't sleep so its time to embark on the last phase of this blog's record keeping of the Willard boys trip to NYC that closed out 2010.

I realize that the last sentence may not make any sense. I apologize. But I am not going back.

At 8a.m. on January 31st, 2010, I woke up in the basement of a home in West Chester, Pennsylvania, having fallen between the cushions on a couch. I was extremely uncomfortable, and there was a skinny guy with smelly feet on the couch perpendicular to mine. His name is Jackson. He is my roommate with foot odor. Anyway, as we heard Jackson's new iPhone start playing whatever his alarm was, we both got out of bed. Half asleep and and still disconcerted, I groggily made my way up the stairs, where the Mateyks had just finished making a delicious breakfast for the boys and myself. I don't know what the name of the dish was, but there was french toast and nuts and syrup and bacon and sausage. It. Was. Glorious. I'm still pumped just thinking about it. Anyway, we ate our meal then hopped in the manvan for the trip into NYC.

We drove two hours into Jersey, the most unkempt state in the Union. Dirty with hatred, and smoggy with fumes, we drove as quickly as possible through this disgrace. However, apparently we did not drive quickly enough. As Jackson cruised along in the left lane at a solid seventy, we noticed someone behind us flick their brights, they then swerved around us, cut us off, brake checked us, and the driver gave us the finger with his mother in the passenger seat and his small son in the back. Welcome to Jersey.

After that mishap, we made it to the train station. All of us had drank a lot of coffee and dr. pepper that morning, so after unloading our bladders against the wall behind Jackson's car, we went and bought our tickets for the train. Exciting!

After the short train ride, We took our first steps into NYC. Tall buildings flanked us, but the first sight we saw was Ground Zero. Then we went into a chapel. Then we saw the Stock Exchange, and Jackson fell behind as he took pictures on his phone and looked like a total shoebie. Then saw the big bull with the ah... large features? Then we saw a dude dressed up like an army man. Then we saw the statue of liberty from afar. Then I got offered a rolex.

After that exhausting series of events, we headed towards little Italy, after strolling for a bit we found a hole in the wall pizza shop. Jackson and I shared a cheesey pizza. Mmmm. After the restaurant, we walked around some more and saw some more cool stuff. Sometime after China town, (where jackson and I bought tourist shirts) we began to lose energy.

After seeing a bunch more stuff, we went to the Museum of Natural History (I think) and saw tons of dinosaur bones. I tried to give a presentation to a group of people because I had found a way onto a platform next to a brontosaurus, and apparently I looked pretty profesh. Jackson thought it was hilarious. We lost Evan for this time.

Upon the museum's closure, we wandered around Central Park for a bit, swung on a swing set, and did other hoodrat stuff with our friends. We decided to look for a place to eat. When we saw a sign that simply read pub, we thought, oh look at our luck, this looks like a happening restaurant. It was not.

Don't get me wrong, the food was good. But the service left something to be desired. After finding out we weren't ordering alcohol, our waitress got us our drinks and that was the last time we saw her. We all were already in foul moods being hungry, cold and tired, and not much was said before, or during the meal. After the meal however, we were able to bond some more over our hatred of outrageous gratuities, and NYC's problem with over pricing necessities. At this point, we made our way to times square.

After getting wanded, being told that the Virginia Tech Huskies played good football, and skipping past a police officer, we made our way to the big time. We were able to snag a corner spot by the police barricade and we got ready for our three hour wait till the ball drop. It was actually a pretty enjoyable time. We made some friends from Italy and some more from Michigan, and had some good conversations. We had an hourly ritual we all looked forward to (except for Jeremy) and we played a fun game with words that Sam knew. Then the ball dropped. It was pretty anticlimatic actually. Just kinda happened then we left. Huh.

After the ball dropped we booked it twenty blocks to Penn Station. Where as Jeremy went to the restroom, the rest of us took a break from walking on the steps of the PostOffice, where three NYC natives came up and talked to us. They loved Jackson and repeatedly called him a word I cannot repeat, but they said it in a loving way and kept dapping us all up. They were having a great time, and told us the word wavy. which means cool.

We rode the train and met some bros from south africa.

Got off the train back in Jersey. Had to walk through a sketchy part because we could not go the way we had came to get to the parking garage and took a wide detour. Then once we got there, we were told "the stairs are broken" and we walked up the winding ramp to the parking garage. I couldn't imagine ending the trip any other way. We all thought it was hilarious. Except Jackson, because John hit him with a snowball, and that dampened his mood. It is two in the morning at this point, I made it clear that I was going to fall asleep, while the other guys said they were gonna stay awake with Jeremy and Jack. I was the only one who didn't lie.

We got back to Jeremy's house that night exhausted. But pleased. Pleased we had accomplished what all the naysayers said would never happen. But also pleased because we could all sleep now, with no threat of being pick pocketed or shot.

It was a great trip, a one and done thing, but I cant imagine having spent New Years differently. Ok well cant imagined is too strong of a phrasing, but it was a good experience with the best friends.

Sorry this account was so long...

<3's
James C Harris III

Philly!

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Land of the Free, and home of the Philly Cheesesteak, Fresh Prince of Bel Air, and National Treasure. The last time we talked the Willard Boys were on our way through the desolation of Maryland towards the great hometown of Jeremy Mateyk, West Chester, Pennsylvania.

The drive itself was highly unremarkable, there was lots of smog in the air in Baltimore, we saw one Amish in Pennsylvania (surprising since 85% of the people in Pennsylvania are Amish, and 98% of exports are Amish rugs.) and a girl passing us hit on JohnCarr. He was looking pretty mountain (Mountain is the newest indie/hipster style, combining flannel shirts cool beanies, coffee, duck boots, and jeans that are curled on the bottom. to check out our mountain model go to http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=1202111462)

Anyway, after a brief, accidental stint in downtown WestChester, we arrived at Jeremy's house, where we snacked out and I played a game of pool against Evan. Evan won. Then, we took the long ride into Philly.

Philly was pretty much just like we all expected. Slightly dirty, with lots of people. The Liberty Bell was pretty big, and I think Jackson was able to learn alot about history from his short time in Philadelphia, apparently that was one topic in his education that was skated over far too quickly. After seeing that great American heirloom, we started walking. We went down onto South St. and up to the little overlook pier on the road. That was pretty sweet. The best part of Philly however, had to be Geno's Philly Cheesesteaks.

Jeremy has never led us wrong before, and he continued that streak in Philly. He brought us to the world famous Geno's to get some cheesey steaks. grossly over priced and lit up like a Vegas strip club, Geno's was everything American. Meat. CheeseWhiz. Bright Lights. Unhealthy. You name an American restaurant cliche, and the odds are 20-1 that Geno's took pride in fulfilling it. However, once you got past the blinding veneer and Geno's narcissism (he had a life-sized cardboard cut out of himself) You found that you were eating a pretty delicious cheesesteak. Also, we discovered what may be the only Italian who is an all out American Patriot. If Geno were some way able to get a full color, proportional, American flag tattooed onto his chest, he'd do it. Geno loves America, liberty, justice, freedom, and fatty foods.

We got back pretty early to Jer-bears house that night, where we all went to bed around eleven so we could be well rested for the trip to NYC. Jackson however likes the tv on as he falls asleep, so he turned on 8-Mile, which I had never seen. Jackson fell asleep in two minutes, and I stayed awake till one am so I could see the epic rap battle between Marshal Mathers and the gang that beat him up. Then we all woke up around 8 for our trip to NYC...

First Blog of a New Year.

Well my friends, it is officially January 4th, 2011. Technically, you've been following our blog for two years now. What a long, strange trip its been.

Speaking of long strange trips, this blog will be an account of the long strange trip taken by some of the Willard men (3/4) to New York City, for the dropping of the ball on New Years Eve 2011. So dear readers, consider this a warning, the following blog will be extensive and detailed, covering all the parts of an exhausting East Coast tour.

In the late afternoon of December 29th, 2009, at approximately 4 p.m., I, James Harris, went embarked on the quest of a life time, that to go pick up John Carr, and eventually go all the way to NYC in a mazda van with five other grown men. Splendid.

Unfortunately, the trip did not get off to the best start. As I turned the corner out of the neighborhood, the Lebaron went through a large puddle of water, and I lost power steering. In an act of pure muscular dominance I was able to power the car to the shop down in Great Bridge, sweating and hoping that the LeBaron would not shut down any other vital parts in the grueling trip. Luckily, I was able to get the belt put back on, and went to pick up John "AngryBird" Carr. After getting lost twice, and making two u turns, I was able to work my way through JC's awful directions and find his house, and him.

Once at Johnny C.'s we did not leave however. John's trip away from home also involves a stint out to the bland state of Kansas, where he will encounter his girlfriend the Stefanie Stuever (with an f) and he therefore needed to pack for a ten day trip. However when I got there, he had packed literally nothing. I took this opportunity to go through his food supplies and scavenge together two peanut butter and jelly sandwhiches on a strange type of bread, and also a piece of fudge. It was pretty good if I do say so myself, I hope to be able to sneak into John's kitchen on many more occasions.

After that, we did the long traffic filled drive up to Spotsylvania, where we met with Jackson, Sam, and Evan. After a hug filled reunion, we decided to fill our empty stomachs with Buffalo Wild Wings. There, our waitresses name was <3 Jess <3 and she did something very peculiar with our drinks. I'm not sure if you've ever experienced this phenomenon before, but it was my first time and I was thrown off. You see, Sam had gotten a Dr. Pepper, and I had gotten my usual Coke. When <3 Jess <3 got to our table with our drinks however, she apparently had lost track of which drink was which. So, one by one she put her nose to the edge of our glass and took a solid smell of each. It was really weird. But she did get it right, apparently she has a nose for that kind of thing.

After this, the boys headed over to Mark's estate in F-Burg, and then back to spend the night back at Jacksons. I however, decided to kill the figurative two birds with one stone, and went to Vienna to see Allie for the night. Then the next morning, I met the boys at a small park connected to exit 44 off 495, and we continued on our trip together to the Northern barren known as Pennsylvania. I noticed the farther we drove North, the less I was able to breathe, and I also felt constant panic attacks. This could have been due to the industrial smog that was in the air perpetually during our trip after passing Baltimore, but I attribute it to the lack of freedom in the land above the Mason Dixon.

I have decided that this will just be the first entry in the logging of our traveling experiences, with two or three more on the way. But for now, goodnight and goodluck.

<3's
James Harris III