---

---

Each of us should have had great holidays and an even better new year
to look forward to. If not, my thoughts are with you. Good buy 2004!
You are now a group of memories.

I like to write a general update from time to time to fill the world
in and keep y’all up to date. However, I also realize that I can go on
and on in my e-mails and will try to be concise with my thoughts for 2004.

SPAIN - A wonderful experience. I enjoyed my host family and the
travels that I was blessed enough to experience. I appreciated
seeing some of my European friends while backpacking at the end of my
studies and liked very much the 8 European countries I traveled.

SCHOOL - Going very well. I took a summer course upon my return from
Europe and completed 22 credits my fall semester at Loras. A
combination of these and an 18 credit spring semester will allow me to graduate
in four years. I will have a double major in Business Management and
Spanish in addition to two semesters overseas. It really feels like my
dad was just putting up my loft in Beckman Hall freshman year at Loras.
Time passes by fast.

FAMILY - We are very swell! Spent Christmas with both my grandmas!
This is always time well spent! My younger brother Travis will be
deployed January 18th for Iraq. I can’t really imagine what kind of
experience that will be for him, but I trust that he’ll benefit immensely from
it and hope the best for all soldiers, civilians, and people of Iraq as
they support for the wonderful work they are doing to aid such an
unjust country. I’ve already taken the liberty to check into visiting him
at some point if he has R and R, but I guess civilians aren’t allowed
into Iraq unless they are working. Who would have thought? A return
trip to a neighboring country could still be possible. Hmmm?

CHRISTMAS BREAK - Loras College has a 5 week break and I was not about
to go about it entirely in Dubuque, IA. I was fortunate enough to stay
a week in Honolulu, Hawaii with my friend Betsy and see almost another
country. I went there to run the Honolulu Marathon on Waikiki and the
Pacific Coast. However, when I wasn’t running 26 miles with 24,000
others, I stayed busy. I took a tour of the island, saw Pearl Harbor,
spent a day at the Polynesian Cultural Center and the North Shore and went
to a luau, tried different types of local foods, went to a fitness
expo, and caught some rays on the beaches of Waikiki. The Polynesian
Islands are full of rich history of the people, monarchies and military
importance. Although I went to the market, saw whales off the coast, and
rented a pretty nice Sebring Convertible, I undeniably enjoyed, very
much, learning about the people, history and culture of the islands. They
are further from any land mass than any other place in the world!
I was also able to see first hand how nice Betsy has it to study Meteorology
at a University in Paradise. To make matters better, they bumped me to
first-class on the return flight home. The rest of my break is being
spent reading, relaxing and running. It is nice to be with my family
without the added stress of school on my back.

WORK - I always feel I need to mention my job. I love it so much and
will certainly miss the people when I graduate and move onward. I work
at group homes primarily third-shift and have no complaints about this.
I have been fortunate to have great bosses to coordinate my schedule so
I can work basically full-time only on the weekends in order to balance
my schooling during the week. It’s probably not everyone’s idea of fun
but less of my money goes to the bartenders because of working weekends
and my grades have also improved a bit as a result.

THOUGHTS ON LIFE - I’m going to compile some of the most foundational
principles in my life into a nutshell and hope they make sense.
Everyone always sends forwards that are the words of others and although
provocative, they lack a certain personal meaning. Right now most of us are
young and able. We are strong, healthy, and for the most part well-off
with only minor problems. Hopefully we realize what it is that is most
important to us and with any luck we are not trading what we want most
for things that we want now. Queen Noor of Jordan says “Soldier on”
and I believe in her and in that philosophy. It’s so important to push
ourselves and be the finest possible. Life is like one big balancing
act and finding happy mediums are key. We only have so much time,
energy, and desire and it is these that we must determine how to respect.
It’s now that I will say thanks for your friendship. If you meant
nothing to me then you would not be reading this entry. Friends and family
mean a great deal to me regardless of how I demonstrate that meaning.
If I succeed at things that really don’t matter, then I am a failure,
but should I grow close to family and friends who are important, then I
am successful. As mentioned earlier, I was going to try to be concise
and so I’ll quit. But just know that you guys are all great and I want
everybody to have a good 2005. You deserve it!!!

FUTURE - I entered college with no idea that I would study in Africa or
Europe and so I guess when I enter the real world I will take advantage
of the various opportunities that are out there. As for now, my eyes
are on New York City. I want to spend part of my life there and I can
enjoy complexities and chaos to a certain degree. New York may be able
to provide that sort of life for me. I’ve also looked into three
Graduate Schools in New York and hope to pursue that after I have a little
work experience and money under my belt. I am ready and highly excited
to graduate. It is time that this man starts making money instead of
spending it. Ha!

---