Jerry Allen an Oregon legend

Take a minute to watch and listen to how special this year is for Ducks. Listening to Jerry Allen's call for so long as a stable guidepost to our beloved sports teams is as good as it gets, so a choked up finally to this regular season sums up what this means to Ducks everywhere. So proud to be a Duck and happy doesn't even begin to describe me right now.

All about the Benjie's

Well it sure has been a long time since I've written here!  Life's been crazy busy and a hiatus seems reasonable.  But here I am back again, sorry for the lapse.  Don't forget to check out my other blog on Tumblr for smaller quick blurps, as well as a feed from this site.

Well how do I summarize the last few months... "flow like water" comes to mind.  In late July Kelli and I headed north to try out a life in Portland.  We both got places downtown and we are just a short walk away.  I overlook PGE Park home to the MLS Timbers and this was the last baseball season for the Portland beavers.  I moved up with a Job repairing fiberglass on Yachts and to keep this post as positive as possible I'll just say this, that job was worse than stubbing your toe! The Lord provided a way out through a lay-off 3 weeks later and this was one of the best and most difficult things I've gone through.  I needed to be out of that job and had already been looking around for new work but after a move and a month without work it put me in the worst financial situation I've faced.

During this whole time Kelli had moved up without a job and was beyond diligent in searching.  After over a month of interviews for a receptionist position with a commercial realty firm she got the call that they were not interested in hiring her for that position, instead had created a new position for her as a brokers assistant that could propel her towards a position as a broker if she was interested.  Lets just say this is a great fit for her and a real blessing! She even has a parking space in a garage downtown! She got  the word on the 10th and had a start date yesterday the 20th.

In the mean time I had applied for a position with the Pelican Pub and Brewery on the Oregon coast in Pacific City for a Sales and delivery position.  I went through 3 interviews and really didn't know how it would turn out.  Then last week I got called in the morning for an interview at 3:30 with a 2:15 drive I was rushed.  It went great, I was with the principal owner and the communications director and they told me they had one more interview the next day and I would know the day after that.  I got called first thing that morning with the offer! What's better, my start date yesterday the 20th the same as Kelli's !  God sure is in control and I can't believe I live downtown Portland, work for a company I've loved for 4 years, Kelli's employed, we found a great church we love, and then top it all off, the Ducks are #5 in the country and Kasey's Spartans (25) beat Notre Dame!!!!

Wanna get some chills?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wrcTDrSZaiE

Dang that's really clear...

The last few weekends have been uncharacteristic for Kelli and myself, we've actually stayed in town and done normal people things like BBQ's, walks, movies, and general frivolities.  We did however go to the NCAA track championships last week which was so much fun! There were some big disappointments but overall it was a blast, we saw some amazing athletes and were part of a record setting crowd.  Sunday came around and we decided to head out on an adventure since we hadn't left Eugene in at least a week :)  Kelli planned out the location and we just rolled with the details.  We drove east on 126 to Clear Lake and enjoyed the beauty of the NW on our way.  It seems everywhere we adventure we are more and more impressed with the beauty of God's creation and how lucky we are to live in Oregon! We really are Oregonians who love and take advantage of the world around us.


Once we got to the lake we checked out the trail head and decided where to go.  We decided to head to the west end first and circle the lake.  It was a 5 mile hike/walk it was really simple and we both were a bit disappointed with the difficulty but it sure was pretty.  The north end is a lava bed and all around you get great views of the lake, as well as the McKenzie head waters and the trout creek feed.  After the hike it was off to Ike's Pizza across from Leaburg Lake.  We had our fill of BBQ chicken pizza and Artichoke pizza and headed home for the night. It was just a quick trip for us only 7 hours :)  Enjoy a few of the pics from our day.

Enjoy a treat from Kelli's blog

Here's a link to a great post Kelli did after a few days of adventure! Enjoy!

http://kelmaks.wordpress.com/2010/05/30/flow-like-water/

I need your feedback

Hey guys,

So I've been running a second blog for a month now to see how I liked a different blog site.  Well so far I'm really enjoying it so I thought I'd send you guys the link.  I will most likely move to it exclusively so you'll want to check it out.  It's through tumblr.com which is as I can best describe it a blog site mixed with a social networking tool slammed into a pretty package.  It's a bit different than blogger or wordpress stuff but I think it's a better platform and it's easier for me to update you since it has a great iPhone app.  Check it out and let me know what you think. Here is the URL  http://monumentsnmelodies.tumblr.com/

Cheers
   ~B

I'm terrible I know

Ok it's a bit sad how long it's been since I've posted! I'm on my way out to Bend for the weekend with a few of my closest guy friends, we're shootin' guns (one of them my new shotgun, oh yeah mom I own a gun now), offroadin' in the WWII jeep, eating steak, talking about life, and just enjoying each others wisdom and sharpening each other. I'm pretty pumped!

So I wish I had some great excuse as to why it's been a while since I've posted but I gotta be hones, I do.  Kelli and I have been joined at the hip and loving every minute of it :)  I'll try to be better but free time is precious and sitting in front of pixels and a keyboard is way less fun than most things but especially time together!

My new job is SOOOOOO great I'm loving every moment! I'm back at the airplane fabrication thing and a few other fun projects too.  Here are a few photos from the last few weeks enjoy!

Blackhawks game w kelli

RV7 Wing plans, tools, and coffee

After work ready to roll

Back to the spot

What a surprisingly great day!!! I got this day off earlier this week just because I needed some time off.  I haven't had a mid week day off in weeks and sometimes I just need a day to re-group.  I've been getting 37ish hours a week so I can afford a day off here and there.

So far by 1pm I've had a great breakfast at OPH with Dan, and then we went to a bike shop to help him with a rebuild of a wheel I traded him a while back that he broke.  Then it was off to the corner café for some joe and cribbage with my friend Emily, we've been in a perpetual crib battle this year and as of late she's been owning me... sadly today was no different (before grandpa chimes in with some smart comment about my ping pong skills I know I am unworthy so save your old fragile fingers from typing the self promoting comment :)

After that it was off to "the spot" for some time in my journal with my thoughts, and time in the Word with the LORD.  I don't know why that spot is so darn good to me, but it just re-centers me every time.  Ben is preaching through Genesis right now and this last sunday we read through Abram's return to Bethel after his time in Egypt.  Ben commented on how he set up an alter to the LORD there and it was a place of re-focusing and a constant in his faith that he could return to, so he could re-focus and connect with God.  In many ways that is what "the spot" is to me, it represents growth, progress, focus, repentance, and comfort.  I snapped a few iPhone shots of it just for your viewing pleasure. Enjoy!!!  Life's been great lately but still taking time out to just be still and know that I am not God is such a needed constant reminder and for that I am thankful!

This is it

I just got done watching This is it the video about Michael Jackson's final concert preparations.  Many of you who know me are aware of my love for MJ and this film is just perfect!  If you haven't seen it do yourself a favor and check it out.  Sure the music is great, ya the concert was going to be revolutionary, but the coolest part of the film to me is a glimpse into the beautiful tenderness and love that Michael had for humanity and life in general.  He was one of the greatest musician's ever and it would seem as if he was a genuinely loving person as well and I think we could all learn a little something from the king of pop!

The conversation is the hard part...

Here's a quick update just to keep it fresh... I've realized that in comparison to many of the blogs I read I post far too infrequently and in turn post John Grisham length novels.  So I'm making an attempt to post more trivial things and more of a life following blog rather than the big updates, hope ya like it, if not don't read it :)

This weekend was one of the most enjoyable weekends I've had in a while.  It started with one of the most epic friday adventures to date.  Kelli came over to my house after work ready for a great day. I had just purchased a new helmet for my passengers so she was my willing tester, we headed out on the bike and road along the River out one of my favorite in town rides.  Some times I just have to get out for a ride and this one only takes 30 minutes from door to door (depending on speed...). We had a blast and I must say she is probably one of the best passengers I've taken out, never fights the turns or tenses up just goes with it which is pretty sweet! After we got back we quick threw on some sunglasses and jumped into her car. It was off to Bend for the night.  We blitzed over the pass and arrived at our destination around 8:00. We went to an outside ice skating rink and it was sooo sweet! Outside skating is so much fun, under the stars in the crisp eastern Oregon air and great company, doesn't get much better than that! We skated for two hours and showed everyone else a few sweet moves with all of our skills :)  We attempted some action shots on my phone but this was all I could do, aiming is tough whilst skating, so we got a bench shot too.

After skating we drove downtown and got some dinner at the Deschuttes brew pub.  We both had elk burgers and some great Oregon beer, once again doesn't get much better than that! I think we lingered there for a few hours because we didn't hit the road until about 11:30 I think, ouch.  My weak early morning body couldn't take much driving so Kelli drove most of the trip home and we finally arrived home at 2am, it was a crazy long day but we had such a darn good time it was worth every second!

Saturday was a Steve day. We got together at 11 and decided to head to portland to hit up Claim Jumpers for lunch. His brother works there and it was good to see him for a bit.   The food was great and it is always so nice to hang out with Steve and talk life. After lunch it was off to a motorcycle shop for a little drooling and oogling, and then back on the 5 heading south to Silverton.  Some of my friends from earlier in College got together for a Settlers of Catan game tournament.  This is a totally nerdy agricultural trading and settlement board game that I happen to love and so do a great deal of my friends. We had a blast and it was so nice to see some old friends and catch up.

Sunday was a normal Sunday for me.  Church in the morning, a quick motorbike ride up north for 50 miles, lunch at home, relax time, and then off to CCF for the evening.  This sunday I ran the sound board which is fun.  I really love audio and music yet my skills of performing are less than notable (though not for lack of effort or variety).  Running the sound board is a great fit for me, it allows me to use my passion in a practical way of service. Afterward it was off to catch up with a few of my close friends Reid and Maphet (Andrew Maphet).  We really sharpen each other and they are a challenge to me and a huge encouragement!

Well that was my event filled crazy fun tons of travel exciting weekend.  I wish they were all this great, it makes the drone of life totally worth it!

Ok so it was still kinda long but hopefully as it gets more regular it will get more manageable size wise.

Ummm, yes I'll take a burrito with a side of Love please...

A few of you know of a thing my friend Andrew Brose and myself started 3 years back called the Eugene Burrito Project (EBP), or often referred to as Bikes and Burritos.  This was an interesting idea that Brose ran across on the internet that summer and e-mailed me THIS youtube video.  We took the idea and made it our own and started it in Eugene that year.  At the time we had a strong passion for the bicycle culture in Eugene and were well connected and known in the community.  We were both active bike builders and car-less riders who made cycling a part of who we were.  We wanted to start an activity to represent Christ to our Christless friends in the cycling world and thought that this idea was not only an amazing way to love the homeless (which we both also had a huge heart for) but we would be able to set ourselves apart in that culture.

The bike culture I speak of is not the Tour de France spandex donning calorie counting group you may think.  Instead it was quite the opposite in fact.  Many of us rode a relatively unknown type of bicycle at the time (though in the subsequent years it exploded as one of the most popular type of cycling) called a fixed gear.  The bicycles were made for Velodrome racing the big banked circle tracks you see in the olympics.  The bikes have no free wheel, one gear, and many have no brakes, the way the bike works is simple, if your legs are spinning the rear wheel is spinning, if they are not the wheel isn't.  So the idea is that you are completely connected to the bicycle, Clipped in no coasting, no hand brakes, only you your mind and your muscles to control this beast.  HERE is a video of some of the crazy things these bicycles are capable of.  More importantly and one of the driving factors behind our idea was the culture that these bikes embody, picture drugs, beer, ratty clothes, tattoo's, piercings, and a bicycle that is often times illegal because the state doesn't recognize a fixed gear bike as a bike with mechanical brakes. Now that description of people don't walk through the doors of my church often and are typically written off as arrogant youth.  In all reality that culture stigma is true, but the people behind it are caring, educated, friendly, outgoing, fun people and we cared for them and wanted to find a way to bring Christ's love to them.

Both Brose and I had a real heart for the homeless population here in Eugene which abounds and were pumped to love and reach those guys too.  So here was the EBP that we formed. We started out with just a few bucks we had and some money that a few of you contributed and went to costco and got all the necessities for Burritos.  We would meet around 7 and cook the rice and beans, and then assemble the burritos with the help of a few friends from our College group.  Check out one of my bags loaded with supplies from the grocery store, 25lbs of rice, 24 cans of beans, 500 squares of tin foil, 100 tortillas, and a costco bottle of Tabasco.  You'd be amazed what you can do when you don't have a car :) We are lucky to live in the NW where vegetarians abound and were actually better off using vegetarian burritos since many of the homeless ate a vegetarian diet (when they ate that is) and that saved us money.  We didn't want to involve any organizations because we didn't want to be obligated to "love" these people in any way other than how we knew how, basically we didn't want to make this a formal ministry where we hand out tracts with our burritos and turn people away, we wanted to love in our deeds and prayed that the Spirit would lead us to those conversations if he willed.

 Since we had no formal support we had to fund it somehow.  We created a spoke card to sell to raise the funds (to the right).  A spoke card many times is nothing more than something to stick in your spokes to personalize and express yourself on your bicycle.  They started as a sort of identification for underground urban races called Alley Cats (which by the way turn out to be a ton of fun).  We made a bunch of these cards pictured below and raised enough money to support it for a whole school year.  EBP went on for just over a year for Brose and I, and we had the time of our lives meeting all the homeless guys and knowing their names and where they came from, as well as all the cyclist in town.  All in all I think we only saw one guy come to Christ but so many people were affected by the ministry and Christ's love was shown all the time.  It was one of the best things I've done in my life and today a pretty cool thing happened that reminded me once again of what we had, it made the paper!

A few of my friends approached me last year about the project and wanted to take it over for Brose and I who had slowed down due to school and life.  I sat down with them and gave them all of our different routes, with maps and locations of different camps and homeless populations throughout the city and told them how we did what we did.  These guys were not cyclists at all and some didn't even own bikes, their passion was for the homeless not the cyclists and wanted to give it a go.  They did it all last year and partnered with CCF to find cooks and deliverers.  Borrowing bikes and safety equipment at times they just made it happen and have done a great job with it.  Sure their vision is slightly different than our's was but they are still loving people to Christ and challenging themselves with it and I couldn't be happier for them.  Well today they made the paper and it's been a hot topic in town as the first formal recognition of what is now officially "Bikes and Burritos."  HERE is a link to the article if you want to hear about the legacy we started and hear about some of the people you can remember and pray for in this great city!

Here are two of the bikes I used when doing this and two of my most used bikes, for your viewing pleasure.  The first one is not a fixed gear, but it is a sinlge speed bike and still very much a part of this bike culture I spoke about.

This is the best bike I've ever built! I still have it and ride it all the time as my commuter.  The rack

on the front is made locally and it makes going car-less possible, check the picture at the top of the page to prove that point. I've put a 180lb friend on it and given him a ride home on it :)

This is my old white Killo TT daily fixed for when I wanted to go fast and do tricks and such. I love this bike also one of the best bikes I've built, but a knee injury last year forced the sale last spring.

What a blessing

Over Christmas I had a chance to fly out to Florida to visit my parents and my grandmother.  Originally I was not planning on making the trek out this year due to finances but my parents called me one evening and said all we want for Christmas this year is to spend it together and offered to help get me there.  Unfortunately I had told my boss that I would work through the holidays as his go to man since I was unable to see family.  I told them this and said I'd see what I could do but no promises.  When I talked to my boss he was more than helpful and was able to give me Christmas eve and through the 26th off. I booked my flight and then called my dad for the fun part.  We had talked earlier and I told him I wanted it to be a surprise for mom and grandma.  So I called mom up and said mom I could only get Christmas eve off and it wasn't worth it for just one day.  She as usual was understanding and supportive and she was hooked.

Flash forward to December 23rd, D-Day.  Wake up at 4:15am to get to work so I can open the store that day.  Get off work at 11, run home pack and get ready for the trip.  12:15 my good friend Steve Melton drives me to the Eugene Airport. 3:30 first flight leaves EUG to Portland.  5:30 flight leaves for pheonix.  11:55pm flight leaves for Ft Lautterdale. 5:30am December 24th I arive in FL.  My Dad picks me up and we head to their house, we chatted about if they suspected it and he assured me they were totally unaware.  Then he told me his "Story" as to why he left the house at butt crack thirty in the morning on Christmas Eve.  "Pam I have to do some last minute shopping and there are big day before Christmas man sales just like black friday but for men.  So when I get home don't look because you'll know what it is right away."  I can't believe they bought that!  I walked into the door and both Mom and Grandma say, we're not peeking.  It was perfect I snuck up behind my mom locked and loaded with a big warm hug, and she turns around at the last minute just in time to shreek and jump a foot in the air, while my grandmother stood in the corner yelling.  Mission accomplished :) What a travel experience, but it wasn't over yet.  Since I only had 2 days there I couldn't just hit the sheets and waste the time, I took a quick little nap and then it was show time.

We had such a great trip, plenty of hang out time, good food, good wine, a card game or two, Christmas eve service, and family.  One of the best parts of the trip was spending time with my grandma.  This woman is one of the biggest pillars of faith in my life and I know she doesn't have a clue what an impact she has on my life.  Even though we are sepparated by thousands of miles and we don't get to see each other often her faithfulness, positive attitude, discipline, humble spirit, gentleness, persuit of the LORD, and prayer life mark my life and affect me constantly.  Her example of consistancy and faithfulness go unmatched in my life.  I hadn't seen her in five years and conversations are few and far between so we were way over-due.  I just love being around her and soaking up her wisdom in her words yes, but more ofter in her actions, I'm taking notes!  I don't know when we'll be able to be together again but I sure would love to make a trip back to Michigan to see all of my family soon.  For now I am incredibly thankful for the short time I had with her!

This year we agreed not to give gifts other than some small stocking stuffers and that was awesome!  With all of us sepparated by so much distance and as our family grows older, the blessings of gifts become difficult and different.  I love giving gifts but what I love about it is blessing people with something they need or want, and this is a hard mark to hit as we all grow up.  The freedom from gifts and monetary focus of the holiday really allowed me to focus on family and the truely amazing gift of a loving framily and time together.  I'd say this was one of the best Christmas' I've had and it was because of the company not the stuff.  It was tough to be away from Heather but I did get to talk to her twice which was amazing! Hopefully next year our whole family can be together.

New layout

I've remodled the blog, and had to do a little HTML editing to get it all set up, so if you are having issues with the page let me know so I can fix it.  So far I am aware of the cut off word "out" in the nav pane and can't find the correct code for it yet, but the links all still work.