Can you and I be friends?
Yes, I know it is hard to believe, but I do have some friends. It shocks me too. Seriously, during my time here at UC Davis I have had the opportunity to make some quality friends.
First of all lets start with my roommate, Paul Etcheverry. I have known Paul for as long as I can remember. I have lived with him for the last 3 years (thats a looooong time). Surprisingly, we get along really well. We like the same music (actually he hates my CCM collection, except for Fleming and John) and movies, plus we have a lot of the same hobbies. Since we are both from Marin County I can always bum a ride off him when he goes home (a big deal when you have no car). The only annoying part about Paul is that he actually tries to get good grades and studies a lot. It takes a lot of corrupting...er, I mean convincing to get him to put down the books. Imagine, someone going to college to learn. Don't worry, I almost completely broken him. Here we see Paul and me with Frankenstein at Universal Studios in Southern California. This was our first trip down south. We have made it a tradition since then that every summer, the week before school starts, we drive down south and visit all the tourist traps (Disneyland, Magic Mountain, Universal Studios). This usually proves to be a rather expensive, yet extremely fun, excursion.
Next we have Libby Wolf, my best friend here. She graduated in June 19995 and is staying around Davis to work. She is the one the got me interested in CCM in the first place. Way back in October she dragged...um, I mean invited me to a PFR/Jars of Clay concert.
Not having heard the music, I opted to go just to hang out. The result of that evening: I had a great time and now own every PFR and Jars of Clay CD (except Frail). Since then I have gone with her to a bunch of Christian concerts. A not so financially beneficial side effect of all this is that after hearing a band, I usually go out and buy their CD(s). Since most of the Christian concerts I have been to provided an opportunity to meet the artists after they played, often I would buy a CD and get it signed afterwards. Judging by the amount of time I spend listening to these CD's I don't regret any of this. Libby is a truly awesome person. She is the person I most enjoy hanging out with and the person I trust the most. Of all my friends that I have ever had, she is the one that I am closest to. In the picture to the left Libby and I are at a party at a friends house. This is one of the few pictures of her and me where she is not making a wierd face. If you don't believe me check out the picture of us at the A.G.O. semi-formal last fall.
Our next stop is one Matt Partain. He is a really easy-going, laid-back type of guy. Even though we have not known each other that long, he is one of my best friends here. He has provided a good example of how I should lead my life, and is always there when I need a favor. Matt is currently a pledge in A.G.O. (his pledge name is fruit assault).
Of all my friends, Matt is the one I feel I can just hang out and be myself with the most. One funny thing about him was that he wants to be a doctor, and is a physiology major here at UCD. Every Thursday we get together to watch "Must see TV" (Friends, Seinfeld, Single Guy, Caroline in the City, ER). He had never seen ER before, and was considering studying to become a surgeon. After one week of ER he was having second thoughts. "Too much blood" he says. As for me, I could never be a doctor on account of all the pressure (at least in an emergency room). In this particular picture we see Matt (second from the left) and some of our other friends after Church one Sunday. Usually we all go to Church, each to our different services (most go to the early one, I go to the midday service so as to sleep in) then we all hook up to go out to brunch. At one such gathering Mr. Partain and I got into a rather heated debate concerning time travel. The debate was never resolved, but as soon as he realizes he was, and still is, wrong then we can move on.
Brian Lawrence, AKA Mog, the man-dog, his own best friend (his A.G.O. pledge name) is another cool guy. While I don't exactly recall ever formally meeting him, we have gotten to be good friends. He is the one the convinced me to rush A.G.O. I think that is the only thing he ever successfully convinced me of though.
Usually I am corrupting him. Case in point, we took a math class together this year. Almost everyday I would try to get him to either skip or leave early. If this didn't work then I just slept (no, I am not a model student. Funny story: we have a final in that math class tomorrow, but rather than study I convinced him to go out with a bunch of friends to see The Birdcage with Robin Williams. If he fails his final then I will never hear the end of it. This is a picture taken at a Christmas party I had. Brian is the guy with black hair in the middle (his head is the "highest" of the group). This is the serious picture. If you want to see the goofy one click here. One thing about Brian, he is the only one of my friends that offers help of every kind without asking. Most people will offer when they sense a need. Brian offers even when you really don't need it.
There is no way to talk about the next two people individually. They are always together (something about that boyfriend/girlfriend relationship). I am talking about my friends Mike Arata and Amy Bradstreet.
Mike is one of the most solid Christian men I have ever met in my entire life. He is always up for talking about spiritual things, and wants to give spiritual support to others. He is one of the leaders of the homeless outreach team I am on, as well as a Bible study leader for First Baptist Church. Amy, his girlfriend, is one of the coolest people I know. She has got this big white dog, Kato (named after Kato Kailen(sp?)), that loves black licorice. If he doesn't know you and you get in his face he will try to bite you. I made this mistake, once. Amy likes to come over with her dog and just hang sometimes. Both Mike and Amy are really good friends and people that I know I could turn to in need. Funny story: Amy likes to walk Kato over to my apartment. Kato is like 5 times the size of Mickey, my bloodthirsty cat. However, Mickey always avoids Kato. The other day Amy and Kato are over and Kato angered Mickey so Mickey attacked. I am now convinced that in a fight my cat would shred that dog :)
Please note that these are not all of my friends, nor are they all of my best friends. These are just the people I spend the most time with and feel privileged to know (except Libby-I have to pay her monthly for her to talk to me).