Tag: writing

James HoganLeave a comment

Well, my third year of college has now come to an end. Wow. Sorta hard to believe that now we are SENIORS at the University of Florida!!!!

But on to today’s happenings – had two exams…but those were inconsequential. Me and Rob woke up early and cooked some nice crunchy bacon before his first exam, mmmm. That’s the breakfast of champions, right there! After that, I got a little more sleep(since last night I got little – hopefully my last late night studying for a LONG time!!). Went and did some errands around campus before my first exam started and still had some time left over, so I enjoyed sitting out on the Plaza of the Americas, soaking in the beautiful day…

Finally, had to go in and dominate my stats exam. After that, me and Rob made some sweet mac and cheese and reflected on what an AWESOME year it’s been! We’ve decided that for next year, our verse will be “From the rising of the sun to it’s setting, the name of the Lord is to be praised!” from Psalm 113. Just so great to remember that no matter what happens…God is still there. And God is still to be praised!

And back to the day…I studied a little more for my materials exam and went in and took that. It’s yet to be seen how I did on that…

But after that, the fun started. Me and Rob grabbed Galan and we went over to Bekah P’s place to play some sweet volleyball. Mary and Deanna and Shari and Amy were all there too, and we tried to play at the sand volleyball court, but it was a tad dark…so we went on an expedition to find a new court. We finally found one at another apartment complex very far away and played some intense volleyball! I do so love playing sand volleyball…because diving to save a ball is just plain awesome. I have to say, we didn’t quite save the cars in the parking lot though. I think we hit quite a few of those…oh well! Anyways, it was just great times hangin’ with friends, no exams left, no cares in the world!!! After we finished around midnight, we walked and walked and walked before getting back to Bekah’s place and grabbing our car…

And now, I must pack. Because tomorrow, out of Gainesville for the summer!! There’s more going on this weekend, but hopefully I get time to write about it later. Now, it’s packin’ time.

LOVE

James HoganLeave a comment

Well, I almost got stuck reading all my old entries here, but then I remembered I did actually want to write something here! And maybe I won’t actually post this, so I could just write nonsense and delete it and no one would know how crazy I am. Um…wait, everyone already knows.

ANYWAY, I’ve been thinking lately(yes, it’s not as much a rarity as some of you may think) about lots of things and you’re all waiting to hear WHY in particular I wanted to talk about love. Ok, maybe you’re not all wondering that, but if you read my last entry(posted mere minutes ago!), you’ll know that I promised to talk about love sometime in the near future. Hmm, what could James possibly say about love? Well, it’s not as scandalous as you may think. And for some reason, I’m feeling really awake right now, so I may actually get through this after all! And I’m just typing my thoughts here, direct from the brain to the keyboard, so pardon any weirdness.

But yeah, love. What do I mean by this? And why again do I want to talk about it? Well, I think it’s partly due to my attending RUF a few times this semester and hearing some of the messages there(the series was entitled “Sex, Dating, and the Bible”). Anyway, got me thinking about marriage and what that crazy business entails. And no, I’m not thinking about marrying anyone anytime soon, no worries! But love in marriage is something really interesting, mostly because it’s so different from what most people in the world think it is. Most people hear the world “love” and think about that magic moment, that spark between two people, those special times alone, that feeling that will last forever because “we’re meant for each other”. And quite honestly, I do not like hearing any of that. I do think that there’s going to be one person I’m going to marry and that we will have just what God intended for us and that it’s going to be awesome. But I also know that neither of us are perfect. We’ll both be flawed human beings living solely by the grace of God. And that’s just fine.

Where we go wrong is when we expect marriage to be some magical institution that will make our lives so much better and that will fill a hole in our hearts. You know what, there’s Someone that can fill that hole so much better than anyone else…and that’s Jesus Christ. I don’t want to say marriage is bad, because obviously, I want to get married someday and it’s going to be sweeet. But it’s also going to be difficult. We’re going to have times where we don’t like each other and times when we really don’t want to be with that other person. And you know those feelings and butterflies you get when you see your special someone? Well, those won’t last forever. But by God’s grace, those two people will persevere in their covenant before God. And that’s what is so awesome about marriage – two people committing to live their lives as one, joining their disparate lives by a promise to love each other forever, by the grace of God.

So what is love? Well I think I’ve basically answered that question, but love isn’t some feeling or emotion…it’s ACTION. Love is how you treat your husband or wife when you’re tired and don’t want to talk with them or don’t want to hear about their problem…yet you do. Love is when you two are arguing and are so mad at each other…yet pray before God for grace to work out the problem and put aside your selfish pride and desires. Love is when you just KNOW(because you’re obviously always right) your way is the right way, yet humbly put her before yourself because the issue really isn’t that important.

Love is not some emotional outpouring of affirmation for the other, but showing her your commitment to serving God by putting her before yourself. Love is wanting to live your lives together for God, no matter what the price. Love is knowing that you in yourself have no power and humbling yourself before God to ask for his grace and power to love your husband or wife. This is what love is.

It felt good to share all that…I’d appreciate any comments and now I think I shall get some sleep…I am feeling rather tired now!

James HoganLeave a comment

I really do like Tuesdays. It seems weird, but my favorite classes seem to be my 7:30 ones. Last semester, I always enjoyed my 7:30 Friday accounting lab. And now that I have my two hour 7:30 Microprocessor class, I’m loving that too – the material is pretty sweet stuff. Gotta love that Boolean algebra. Maybe it’s just the fact that in all my early classes, I have coffee. Yep, that’s gotta be it. Coffee just makes class more fun. Proven fact. Well, in my head at least. And I need to find a buy a good coffee machine and buy some awesome coffee – I’ve come to the conclusion that it will be cheaper in the long run to do that than buy coffee from Java City twice a week.

And to more serious matters…today is September 11th, 2007. So odd to think that six years ago today, I was in my freshman year of high school while four airliners were hijacked by terrorists. While I was in my microprocessor class today, around 9:00 or so, I remembered how six years ago, I had just found out about the attacks while in my second period computers class…how strange it is to think a moment like that is frozen in my memory forever. That day is still clear in my memory, but not as vivid as it used to be. I wish I’d taken the advice of my history teacher in sophomore year to write a detailed account. He told us that we had witnessed history and should record our impressions. I thought of it as schoolwork(thus didn’t do it) but now wish I had. I did write something for a messageboard(BZPower) back in 2002, so thought I’d post that here now(unedited).


Written 9/11/2002

I can still remember that day as if it happened yesterday…

I went to school as normal, my 1st period English progressed like it always did, and then I went to 2nd period Computer and Business Skills; we were pounding away in the typing program when, sort of subconsciously, I saw a teacher come into the room and whisper to my teacher.(This is around 9:00 Eastern Time) Then my teacher told us that a plane had crashed into the WTC and she turned on the TV.
To tell you the truth, I didn’t really think it was that big at first. I thought that it wasn’t that big of a deal, some small plane had accidentally crashed into the WTC, and I thought, Well, that is really sad and probably a few people died, but at least, probably, not too many people were hurt.
For the rest of the period, we watched the TV, but I didn’t really get what was happening. The next period, Team Sports, was outside, so no TV, but in that class, people were saying how the Pentagon had been hit, the White House exploded, and the Capitol had collapsed.
That was when I began to realize it was much more serious. I could not fathom all those landmarks going up in smoke, and I knew this would be a turning point for America.
The next class, Spanish II, was in a portable classroom, so there was no TV, and I still did not totally know what was going on. After lunch, I arrived in 5th period Physical Science and I asked my teacher, “WHAT happened?”
She then told me how both towers had collapsed, the Pentagon had been hit, and a plane had crashed in Pennsylvania. For the rest of the day, I was in shock.
I went to my last class, geometry and for the first time(but not the last) I saw the video of the towers collapsing. Finally, I got to go home. I walked home, like I usually do and saw my family around the TV. We had planned to have a big turkey dinner with one of our friends, an Air Force Reservist, but no one was hungry. Our friend was crying over what had happened, so we tried to comfort her.
I will never forget that day.
And I know how most of us hate Osama bin Ladin and wish he were dead, but I say we follow the the words of Jesus and “Love our enemies” and pray for him.
I will never be the same and I know most of us never will be either.
GOD BLESS AMERICA!!!!!!!!!!
-James Hogan
Sophmore, Gaither High School
Tampa, Florida, USA

And on that somber note, I am off to get ready for Arredondo Room…mmm, beef stew. Haven’t eaten breakfast today, so I’m starving. Hope everyone has a great day!

Stolen from Becca!

James HoganLeave a comment

1.Grab the book nearest to you, turn to page 18, and find line 4.
“…and was used to indicate the legal repayment or cancellation of a debt or the…”
(Ephesians commentary)…my facilities textbook was about equally close, but I like this one better.

2.Stretch your left arm out as far as you can.
I can’t touch anything…I’d fall out of my chair. But my blue curtains/window are that way.

3. What is the last thing you watched on TV?
Um…probably one of the US Open matches. I think it was Serena Williams getting whipped…

4. Without looking, guess what time it is:
10:15?

5. Now look at the clock. What is the actual time?
10:00…eh, I was sorta close.

6. With the exception of the computer, what can you hear?
My roommate and friend talking and one of them strumming a guitar.

7. When did you last step outside? What were you doing?
Last time I went outside, I went to a two hour class, then straight to Wednesday night Bible study…just got back a few minutes ago.

8. Before you started this survey, what did you look at?
Something on Facebook, probably(besides Becca’s blog, of course)

9. What are you wearing?
blue jeans and a Michigan State shirt

10. Did you dream last night?
Probably…I remember it was weird, but don’t remember the details.

11. When did you last laugh?
Walking into the apartment and commenting on the random smell…and discovering it was my roommate’s 2 week-old leftovers…

12. What are on the walls you are in?
Actually nothing right now…I haven’t put up my posters yet. So my walls are nice and clean…

13. Seen anything weird lately?
Not particularly…besides my Microprocessor notes I’m trying to study for a quiz tomorrow!

14. What do you think of this quiz?
It’s weird and has no logic…but it’s fun!

15. What is the last film you saw?
Um…last night I was watching Attack of the Clones while doing homework…last new film would be Shrek 3 though.

16. If you became a multi-millionaire overnight, what would you buy?
Give a lot of it to my church and family and friends, buy lots of books and then put the rest in savings so I wouldn’t have to work and could devote my life to ministry…

17. Tell me something about you that I don’t know.
I’m not Jewish…despite my many user names with “Israeli” in them…

18. If you could change one thing about the world, regardless of guilt or politics, what would you do?
I would remove people’s desire for power…but I don’t think I could do that.

19. Do you like to dance?
Do I like to? Yes. Can I? Well…that’s a different question…

20. Imagine your first child is a girl, what do you call her?
Well, that decision isn’t all mine…but I like the name Alex/Alexandria.

21. Imagine your first child is a boy, what do you call him?
John.

22. Would you ever consider living abroad?
Yes, definitely.

Posted this on BZP first…thought I might as well post it here too! Feel free to steal..

James HoganLeave a comment

Well, I really should be doing homework now, but I don’t have class tomorrow and I figure I can get some of that work done then. Yeah, not the greatest plan of attack, but I want to write about this weekend while it’s still fresh in my mind. Let’s just say that my sweet weekend was definitely worth all the homework I’ll be doing these next couple days.

Rob has a family reunion down in Plant City every Labor Day(not sure if I talked about it last year), and I went last year too. So Friday night after his class finished, we drove down to Plant City and listened to some of his music and then a great Relient K/Switchfoot/Skillet CD I’d just mixed. We got there after ten because we took all the back roads to get there, through all the little towns(his car is an ’87 civic and doesn’t do so well at high speeds). Anyway, we got to his uncle’s place eventually and hung out with his extended family for a while…it’s so cool that even though I’m not part of his family, they all love having me there and we’re all able to just be ourselves. Later that night, me and Rob and his younger cousin Nolan went over to his older cousin Andy’s apartment, where we were going to stay. We played some video games(Mario tennis, anyone?) before going to bed.

Saturday morning, we all had to get up early because Rob and his dad and uncles were going golfing. We had a yummy breakfast of sausage and biscuits at the uncle’s house and after that me and Andy and Nolan went back to the apartment and did more gaming…for the rest of the morning. We then went back to the house for lunch, where the rest of the guys had returned after golf. Unfortunately, Rob didn’t win. Anyways, after that, we watched some tennis(Maria Sharapova got beat in the third round sadly) and then played around in the pool. For maybe four hours. I don’t remember exactly, but we were in there for quite a while! I actually wasn’t going to go in at first because I didn’t have a suit, but I got splashed by Cindy(Rob’s sis), so just went in anyway.

That night, me and Rob, Andy and Nolan went to the USF game! It was great because I’d never been to an USF game before OR been in the Raymond James before. We had great seats…unfortunately, the game wasn’t that great, even though they did win pretty handily. USF needs to get better if they want to have a good year. On the way back to Plant City, listened to Beatles music almost the whole way…nothing better than just chilling in a car listening to “Hey Jude”…

That night at Andy’s apartment…well, let’s just say I didn’t get much sleep. We played MORE video games(honestly, I don’t usually game this much!). We played James Bond: Nightfire the most, which was awesome. Guiding rockets in at enemies…doesn’t get much better than that. Due to the extreme lack of sleep which the gaming induced, me and Rob were pretty tired in church the next morning – I felt really bad about that. It reminded me of why I always want to get a good night’s sleep before church.

Anyway, as soon as we got back to Uncle Rob’s, we collapsed in the living room. Rob slept on the floor for about seven hours or so…we didn’t wake up until dinner. I didn’t get quite as much sleep…I woke up for a small lunch and was trying to sleep on the couch, but Cindy was there so we just chilled and talked for a while(i.e., all afternoon). We had a great meatloaf dinner(at which Rob was finally awake) and then we all played cards(Scum, woo!) That night back at Andy’s place, after a little gaming, I fell asleep at eleven while they were still playing. I didn’t wake up until nine the next morning!

That morning, we went back to the house for breakfast, but then me and Rob got on the road again, to Tampa! Stopped in and saw my family for a little while and had a spaghetti lunch. So glad I got to see them again, at least for a little bit! Also called Katharyn and talked to her for a while…she’s really enjoying herself at The Master’s College – she just loves California.

Me and Rob then drove back to Gainesville because there was a Creekside college event going on at four(Lake party at the Moninger’s house!) And it was a sweet house indeed…they had a great dock complete with jetski and boat and tubes and an awesome yard and treehouse and volleyball net…pretty much everything one needs to have fun! We played football for a little while, which was great fun despite having so many people playing. The only touchdown scored was a defensive pick returned for a TD. Well, at least my team won. It was so much fun playing games and hanging out with the people there…and enjoying the awesome spaghetti dinner and ice cream, mmmm.

And that was this afternoon. Just got back a couple hours ago and have been cleaning my room and getting ready for the week. Now, I’m probably going to do some more homework, but just wanted to write all this down. I wish all weekends could be as sweet…

Goodnight, all!

James HoganLeave a comment

Ahhh, I’m so frustrated right now. I know I said I was tired a few minutes ago, but I really really wanted to get some writing done(hmm, maybe I should have been packing instead), but for some reason I just CANNOT write a poem to save my life. I know the subject, I know the feeling, I know the passion…but for some reason, my fingers cannot express the words that my mind feels. Ah well. I guess it’s just not meant to be. At least tonight.

Anyway, while I’m up, just thought I would express a few thoughts on my upcoming third year in college…first of all, it’s just so hard to believe that I’m actually entering my THIRD YEAR. Whenever I met a new coworker at Sweetbay(mostly high school students) and they found out I was already in my third year of college, I received surprised looks at being so old and “advanced”. I was reading through some of my old posts from back in 2004, my senior year at Gaither, and I can’t believe that I’ve already gone through two years of college. In some ways, it’s sad, because I feel I was so much more innocent back then, but I’m also grateful for all the things I’ve learned these past few years, for all the growing(emotionally, mentally, spiritually) that I’ve done. But still, I’m twenty now and I have the feeling that more is expected of me now. I’m not just a high-school student. I’m not just a college newbie. I’m expected to learn how to make my way in this world we live in. Scary, yes. But also inspiring. Because I know I CAN do these things. Sure I’ll struggle(and I already have) but by the help of God I will do amazing things in my future.

And I wonder, what will three more years bring? Three years ago, when I first started this journal, I had no idea what I’d be like in 2007. I had no idea what my direction was or who my best friends would be. But now I know what I’m doing, know that I want to be an industrial engineer, know that I have some awesome friends in my life, people I didn’t even know three years ago. But it’s what I don’t know now that intrigues me. Three years from now, where will I be working? Or will I be working? Will I still be in school? Will I have someone special in my life? I can sort of foresee the answers to at least the beginning questions, but as to the last one, I have no idea. Sort of fun to wonder though.

And that’s another thing that I’ve been thinking more about lately, about having a girl in my life who would be my friend, my love, my future…I know it sounds a little mushy thinking like that, but I do get lonely sometimes for that kind of relationship, despite all the great friends(and great God) that I have. And I wonder what my future holds in that regard. And I pray.

But enough of all that, and back to the future. Or, er, the present. I really am getting rather tired and suppose that I won’t get any writing done now. For real now, goodnight, all!

James HoganLeave a comment

Wow, so I’ll be back in Gainesville in about four days. I am so super busy this week; either packing, shopping, or seeing people before I leave. Also, helping take all of Katharyn’s boxes to be mailed out to California. It’s weird thinking she’s going to be farther from home than I am. Today I went to Wal-Mart to grab some kitchen supplies and also bought a couple DVDs, Air Force One and The Matrix. Now I just need to buy Reloaded(I love that movie).

Oh and I only have two more days of work! I thought I’d be really happy when work was over and done with, but now that it’s getting to the end, I’m sad…I’m really going to miss the people I work with. You know how you hear horror stories about people’s co-workers/bosses? Well, none of that here. Come winter, guess where I’ll be working again? That’s right, Sweetbay. One other note here, I got the “Service Clerk of the Month Award”. And yes, Service Clerk=bagger. Ok, that may not be the most glamorous of awards, but I’m pleased that God’s given me the ability to work hard at whatever I do…including bagging groceries.

And I just realized last entry I wrote about the beach day coming up, and yeah, that was definitely awesome. I only got a little sunburnt, and it was great seeing Laura again. And Dream, too for that matter, seeing as I’ve rarely hung out with her this summer. She gave me my b-day present(only about four months late, haha), “School of Rock”! Wooo, that movie is super sweet.

And I am annoyed with my muse for having left me all summer…I have gotten no productive writing done at all. Ah, well. When it comes back, I’ll be ready.

And now, I am off. Farewell, all!

James HoganLeave a comment

So, almost the end of the week – FINALLY! The only thing I have left to worry about is my statistics exam at 12:50. I think I’m ready for it – but still a little nervous. We’ll have to see how that goes…

I had my 7:25 accounting discussion today – it’s so weird going to class that early in the morning. It feels like high school all over again. And it was SO cold this morning. Had to be in the 30’s, which I haven’t felt for a while. It was weird because as I was walking to my class, I had a cup of coffee – the inside of my hand was nice and toasty while the outside of my hand was freezing. Very odd sensation, let me tell you. But, for some reason, I don’t mind the early class TOO much. Just the waking up at 6-something. That’s not fun. Oh, and in class, while we were going over stuff I sort of already knew, I wrote a haiku. I’ve never really written them before, but I did. And it’s pretty lame, but hey, all haikus are. Here it is:

Accounting is a
very bad place to be at
an early hour.

Actually, I wrote it a little differently in my notebook, but it didn’t follow the form(ok, I don’t write them all the time), so I modified it a touch, so it actually is a haiku(5,7,5 instead of the 5,5,7 I had). Oh, and hour is two syllables. I so decree it.

Anyways..since you probably didn’t want to see my haiku anyway, I’ll change the subject. I’m sort of hungry, so I should probably eat breakfast soon. But I’ll talk about the Career Showcase instead. That was on Wednesday and was much fun. I was really worried, but I don’t know, I found it very..exhilarating, to be there and talk to the recruiters from different companies. I don’t know if I’ll get an internship, but at least I met a bunch of different company people and passed out my resume a lot. After it, I was exhausted though. I wish I’d gone last semester, but at least I went this time. I’ll definitely have to go next fall to get an internship for NEXT summer.

Ok, I’m not sure of what else to write, even though I know lots has happened, so I’ll just call it an entry and go have breakfast. Hope everyone has an awesome day!!