Recently

Recently I've gotten in touch with several friends whom I haven't spoken to in a really long time. So for those of you who fall into that category, here's a history of me since 1996.

I graduated the University of Alabama in 1996 and moved back to my hometown of New York. My career has taken a strange path. Highlights include a yearlong stint as a production assistant at Fox News Channel and three years as a copy editor in the American Kennel Club's editorial department. After my layoff from the AKC in 2001, I also went through several temp and freelance gigs, not all of them editorial. Some were awful, but there were a few bright spots. Those include working as a press officer in the United Nations' press department, copy editing a children's reading/math currculum for The Princeton Review, and proofreading for some cool ad firms around New York. I also did a lot of work for American Lawyer Media.

Work aside, I also spent about 10 years heavily involved with ministry stuff at Times Square Church in New York and even worked as a part-time staff member for about a year and a half. Lots of ups and downs. I had the privilege of visiting several foreign countries on ministry trips, which did a lot to shape the way I am now. I did a lot of stuff, most of it music-related. The highlights were trips to Guatemala and Argentina, where God graciously allowed me to fulfill long-held dreams of leading worship in Spanish. In particular, doing a live music showcase and TV interview in Spanish in Rosario, Argentina. Everything lasted for almost 45 minutes. I have a DVD of the show and it's really embarrassing for me to watch, but it remains an experience I'll never forget. I've described some of those experiences in Argentina in earlier blog entries.

As some of you have just discovered, I've been in Seoul, South Korea for the last two and a half years teaching EFL (English as a foreign language). Basically I got sick of everything back home. My career was in a rut and, high points notwithstanding, I was burnt out on ministry stuff. I was unhappier than probably many people at church knew, and actually quite angry. Although to my closest friends this stuff wasn't much of a secret. Ha ha. Add in personal struggles and failures and you could say a lot was going on in my life. The common wisdom is that one shouldn't move to another city or country to escape one's problems, but in a way that's exactly what I did. However, upon arriving in Korea the Lord surprised me with a relatively fulfilling career and several good relationships. My problems have followed me here--it seems as if they arrived early and waited for me at the hotel--but I'm in a situation where I'm surrounded by several needy people and every day I have an opportunity to try to meet those needs. Ostensibly many of those needs are physical, intellectual or, in the case of many Koreans, linguistic. But closer examination reveals some profound spiritual needs. I don't consider myself a missionary per se (ministry was definitely not my goal in coming to Korea), but maybe a kind of cultural/spiritual ambassador. Being a Western foreigner and speaking a little Korean have given me a lot of open doors into people's lives. And so I have to care for other people and forget about myself for a while.

My current hobbies include listening to music. Especially gospel, indie, jazz, alternative and metal. I'm also a ballad/slow jam freak although I avoid the sexually explicit stuff. Exercising, studying Korean and reading...mostly articles on the Internet. My Spanish has been on hold indefinitely. I study Korean quite obsessively. Don't know far I'll go with it, we'll see what happens over the next few months. Korean aside, other recently developed interests include Western pop culture and contemporary Korean culture. Amateur photography. I also like politics and current affairs, although you'll hear more about those from me in person than on the Internet. During my college years I was really hung up on racial issues. I really wore that stuff on my sleeve. Racial issues are still important to me, but not like before.

Occasionally I get asked about cartooning, which I actively did until about 1993 or 1994. Since then I've done a couple of projects but nothing serious since 2003, when I worked on an in-house children's curriculum for Times Square Church. I miss drawing and I hope to return to it someday, but so far other hobbies have taken priority. I've discussed the possibility of doing some cartooning for my curriculum where I teach and my head teacher loves the idea, but so far I haven't done anything. Although recently I befriended a coffee shop owner is also an artist and interior designer. Last week he asked me to do a drawing for him. Having a black writing pen in my mind (which I always used for drawing, I rarely used artist pens) and using it to do a cartoon sketch awakened a long-dormant feeling that nearly brought me to tears. I haven't yet decided if and how I'll pursue that further. Several people are encouraging me with that, so we'll see.


My Christian faith has gone through several phases since 1993. In the current phase I try to show a lot more patience and understanding with people I don't understand or agree with. I don't mean an ecumenical type of understanding that says "all roads lead to heaven, Jesus is just one way." I mean a practical, day-to-day way of trying to relate to people. Some of my non-religious friends may not understand this or even be put off by my remarks. All I can do is ask you to hear me out even if you don't agree with it. I don't think "fundamentalist," in its proper context, should be a bad word. Hopefully I can be focused on heavenly things but not with my head too high in the clouds to be ignorant of people's needs. I've rubbed shoulders with hundreds of Christians in several different kinds of environments. I've seen things that have inspired, encouraged, discouraged and repulsed me. I've made some good decisions as well as decisions that have hurt not only me but the people closest to me. Lately, the most important things for me are that in my life I'm becoming more like Jesus and that my witness is one that makes him seem approachable and accessible. All of which may seem obvious, but for a long time I didn't really care that much.

I'm in the middle of a two-month long vacation between semesters. Sleeping late notwithstanding, I've kept myself busy with several activities. Those include working out on a more regular basis, a Monday night Bible study, studying Korean and practicing "free talking" with several Korean friends, getting ready for the spring semester, and socializing more than I probably have in my entire life. Recently I spent a few days at my friend Byung-Jin's home in Busan, a port city in the southern part of the Korean peninsula. It was a quiet, relaxing weekend although it was freezing and I mostly stayed indoors. I enjoyed spending time with Byung-Jin and his wife. Lots of laughter, gorgeous scenery and good food. And jokes about my height and eating habits and so on. It was also interesting to observe his life as one of the pastors of a small church down the street. Much of our conversation was in Korean, which was a much a surprise to me as anybody else. The night before returning to Seoul, I stayed up all night on Bying-Jin's computer surfing the net and catching up with friends. I listened repeatedly to the Mississippi Mass Choir's "Having You There" on YouTube. I first discovered this song while DJing at a small radio station in Tuscaloosa, Alabama in 1993. I remember that time vividly, but this night in Korea of all places, it was incredible to see where the Lord had brought me 16 years later. Having more free time and reconnecting with many older friends has caused me to reflect more on my life beyond my usual navel-gazing process. And I'm good at navel gazing. Having Him there has truly made the difference in my life.

Happy Christmas.

I'm a little late. Ha ha.

Expect my New Year's greeting near the end of February. Ha ha.