We are Family

These are the leaders at PD, Myself, Trey, Meg and Amy. Go team!

Windy Gap...you know

Well it was another weekend in the beautiful Appalachian mountains at Windy Gap. I have been to this place at least about 103 times over the past 7 years I've been involved with Young Life. This weekend we had kids from Providence Day--the private school in Charlotte where I do ministry. It was a great weekend. I realized over this weekend it will be tough to leave these kids who I really love. This freshmen class at PD has a very special place in my heart and I only feel closer and more connected with them.
My team, as well, has become the family I always want a Young Life team to evolve into. As well as 4 very busy people can hang out and be friends and family, we are. It is much fun for me to see leaders loving on kids and being in their lives. I love seeing kids "get it." We had a "new Christian" seminar and there were a few guys and girls from PD who went. It was a gift to see what we rarely do, a difference. It was humbling and a bit intimidating to realize we (PD leaders) get the chance to "feed" these "newborns" in their faith.

"For you are great and do wondrous things; you alone are God." Psalm 86:10

Holocaust thoughts

I went to the Holocaust Memorial Museum today with my friends. This is the most powerful museum--by far--I have ever visited. I was very impressed by the architecture and the overall setup as we started on floor four and as we made our way through innumerable exhibits ranging from thousands of shoes discovered at Auschwitz to first-hand accounts by survivors.
After spending nearly 3 hours saturated with images and information from Hitler's rise to power in 1933 to the freeing of prisoners as British and American forces moved in during 1945 to videos and stories of survivors I was exhausted (and hungry). I have never felt so many different emotions directed in so many different ways in my life. It was an experience, for sure.

A few things really struck me:
1) Hitler's rise to power and the capture of Germany's heart was frighteningly fast.
2) The World's refusal to get involved or respond (the U.S. not withstanding) was appalling.
3) Hope is more necessary than bread or water and kept many Jews alive.
4) I take for granted democracy and differing parties that so often are frustrating because they can not agree on issues, however, allow a great check on power and eliminate much of what fueled Nazi Germany.

I suggest you and your friends/family make this stop a priority and take part in this work of art on an architectural, historical and humanitarian level.

This picture is from the "reflection area" where you could light a candle. It just seemed to fit the overall feel of the tour.

...in the palm of my hand

Well friends today was a good day. Despite the very blustery (Winnie the Pooh) conditions coupled with quite chilly weather making walking around the National Mall more difficult than ceasing a filibuster, today was really cool.

I never made the requisite trip to D.C. in 5th grade due to my absence on that educational juggernaut, the Safety Patrol. I have driven across the country packed in a van with the whole family and visited the Grand Canyon, Niagara Falls and taken multiple trips to the beach costing 20 hours round trip. Oh yes I have even frequented that national institution, the Oak Ridge Museum of Science and Energy. They have that cool ball that you put your hands on and it sends you hair straight up. Despite traveling to nearly all 50 states I had never been to D.C. to go to the museums and National landmarks. Well, my friends in the previous story of my rickshaw night you may have noted my desire to do "new" things. So here I am in D.C. for two days of riding subways, getting lost, staring at maps, reading exhibit boards and walking for hours on end.

So who knows? After a few days here maybe the whole District of Columbia will be as the Capitol Building is...in the palm of my hand!

"Hey. Do you guys need a ride?"

This new year I have one major resolution and that is to try new things and take more risks. Now, granted, those are on sliding scales and the theory of relativity (that all things are relative) applies, yada, yada, and what not, to and fro all the live long day. SO in that vain I decided to fill in for a guy at a ricksha(w) company in Charlotte.
Now of course with the likes of Aerosmith and Lenny Kravitz rocking out a concert in the new Bobcats Arena there would be plenty of traffic (foot and otherwise) Uptown and a ricksha is the perfect remedy to said problem.
Having biked hard this A.M. at the YMCA (young man, are you listening to me?) for about 30 minutes because I thought that would be the extent of my exercise for the whole day I was a bit reluctant to take the spot riding for 4 hours in streets and sidewalks through traffic hauling up to three people, "kids ride free." At this moment my legs would like to interject their thoughts on calling peddling a huge tricycle thing "riding." I guess it's like heavily schooled doctors and lawyers who "practice" law or medicine. But I digress.
Never-the-less I acquiesed in my decision and met up at 6:30 with Bobby. I was given a shirt, a radio, a ricksha and blinking lights for the front and rear of the bike. I was off. I was greeted by the other guys with questions such as, "how often do you ride?" or, "do you mountain bike much?". They all, of course, were met with my inability to lie and confess, "I actually don't ride." These were short conversations.
I finished the night (really biking for about 4 hours with roughly 30 minutes of cumulative inactivity) by taking a couple down two one ways, on a muddy sidewalk that was too narrow and nearly striking the chap in the head with a rogue branch. Then after 2 miles, a red light, two half-serious/half-joking screams and 15 minutes we landed at their place. Thankfully they tipped well.
So that was my night. I wasn't able to hold out until the very end when the concert would let out. Partly I regret this missed opportunity to hang with true Aerosmith fans denimed to the brim. However, in the heat of the moment as I looked back to the city 2 miles my aft and 190 horses in a comfortable German seat in front, I decided a Cajun fillet sandwich and seasoned fries from Bojangles via the drive-thru would be the real "riding" I was ready for.
I hope to ricksha it up again though.
Don't you worry about that.

Apples and Oranges

So it's here. It has arrived. The "best Mac yet!" I can't believe it. Why is it that those marketers at Apple do such a crazy-good job of packaging and promoting that I want a computer that I have no business wanting at a price I can only scoff at. Only in America where we have "all you can eat" buffets and grossly large debt on a personal and national level do we have 14 million iPods sold just in this last quarter and computers I don't need filling my dreams at night.

Well, I guess it could be worse?

Oh yeah, if you have about an hour and any interest in Apple on an investment or enjoyment level I would go to www.apple.com and check out the Quicktime cast of Steve Jobs and his EOQ update. WOW! I wish I had, like Forrest Gump, purchased some massive stock in them!

Why I don't drink coffee

Check out this story from CNN.com (copy and paste in your browser button)


http://www.cnn.com/2006/US/01/09/starbucks.bomb/index.html

New Year's Eve

Ah New Year's Eve. That night when all craziness breaks out and you attempt to multitask by sending the old year out and ring in (whatever that actually means) the new one in like manner. It's a time to reflect on the life and times of the past 364 days and the anticipation of the next 366! This year (05/06) high atop the 1320 building north of uptown 70-ish friends rang in said new year with a bang. We had dancing and food, a tent, wine, beer, oh yeah and dancing! For those who were able to attend, thanks for coming! If you were unable to attend for personal, religious or discriminatory reasons...I understand. None-the-less I wish you and yours the happiest of new years and hope big things happen in 2006!
You can check out some pics from the party on the right of the page. Enjoy.

And so it begins...

Welcome to the beginning. This is the officially licensed website/blog for me, Bradley Hasemeyer. In the weeks and months to come there will be new editions (not the band) of articles, thoughts and pictures. This is my attempt to be efficient in reaching a large number of people in efforts to inform and be informed. I look forward to interacting with you, my friends, in the near future via this blog.
Thanks for stopping by!
Young B