ahhh, the holidays.

yesterday we went on an official sharpory excursion to the muir woods national park in marin county(along with most of the people in the greater san francisco bay area)...the moss-covered redwoods were quite majestic. "hiking" on the asphalt and redwood boardwalk was a new experience.

my birthday and christmas were beautiful...had a great time with bethany's family and mine. i really do love the sounds and scents of the holiday season, time spent with friends and family.

i have spent a lot of time thinking lately about my desire for a more integrated and centered life for 2008.

bethany and i have pursued our dream of obtaining training and experience to serve the poor in the forgotten places at a frenetic pace for the last 3 years. i have no regrets about this, but i find myself forgetting how to live in the present, to be mindful of the current reality. this is something i am shooting for in 2008: to be more centered and integrated, more balanced. ryan wrote a great post about some of the stuff our household has been into.

may this be a year of greater peace and wholeness, of doing beautiful things in the world.

world famous chicken pot pie.

last night, ryan & holly took me and bethany out for my birthday at the Liberty Cafe up the street on Cortland, the main drag for the bernal hill neighborhood. it was cold, wind gusting down the street as we sat in the small bakery/cafe/wine bar, drinking pellegrino, a wonderful zinfandel, and enjoying ridiculously good chicken pot pie. i love my housemates (including paxton, who was sending me good vibes from his crib at home).

when i got home, a small group of people were waiting for me with fine wine and open arms. i felt loved and honored for my early birthday. thanks to all for making me feel like i belong.

photos

this is pax's guitar...i'll be using it on my next album

a wee bit inspired

i have been writing some music lately, like every day for the last 4-5 days. i don't know what it is, perhaps the fact that i have time to do it. or perhaps it is the fact that i live in a house with an abundant amount of creative energy...thank you sharps.

one of my new year's resolutions is going to be to record 5 full songs...we'll see how it turns out. my musical brain has suffered some atrophy over the last few years...but it feels so good play guitar again.

now, to decide whether i'll actually be singing or screaming......or both?

in a quiet moment

i am thankful for a couple days free from the emotional and intellectual burdens of school. i tend to do a quick internal inventory of(read: question) the path we are on....it's ironic sometimes that school sometimes feels like a distraction from the "master plan" even as it is an essential piece to enabling us to pursue our dreams.

the weather has been cool, clear and beautiful up here.

i learned today that when eating Thai food, get red curry dish, get pad thai, and mix them together. very good.

i am alive.

i'll skip the disclaimer about why i haven't been blogging.

--really though, betty and i are so happy to have our housemates back rom their tour/pilgrimage. we love sharing life with these three. ryan chronicled their journey...his blog is a great read.

--finished another semester of grad school. master's degree in august of next year. now, to write that thesis....

--Bethany and I are part of a community up here called SEVEN. on dec. 2, we joined with our fellow peeps and took our seven vows for the next year: love, community, simplicity, creativity, prayer, service & obedience. we are excited for another year of attempting to live into a new way of life together.


--Our dear friend Daley Hake was just in town for a few days. we slapped on our best Christmas sweaters, drove south down the pristine coast a ways, and sawed down the Sharpory Christmas Tree. I carried that redwood beast on my back all the way to the car. Oh yeah, Daley takes rocking pictures.

Daley



A couple more pics Daley took:

me & pax.




me doing what i often do....ridiculousness.







Daley took this picture of my beautiful wife bethany in our garage.






thats all for now. peace.