Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Hillsong Conf London

*At the bottom, there is a video of Louie Giglio singing God's Great Dance Floor

I've been reading online all about HillsongConf LA ending and being fabulous. I so wish I could have gone, but I was able go to a couple nighttime sessions of HillsongConf London while I was over there.

This is the opening, but I didn't film it.



Strangely enough, right before I read all of the LA posts, I looked through the notes on my phone. I keep sermon notes on there when I travel. I'll even write down the jokes that the speaker says or funny things that happen.

Louie Giglio fell off the stage on his night. Whoops.




This are my notes directly copied from my email and slightly condensed:

Brian Houston 
Oceans (where feet may fail)
Matthew 14:25  
He's out there in the mystery. Peter took a step into the water into the great unknown.
God's great mystery tour*** 
You called me out upon the water, the great unknown, where feet may fail. And there I find you in the mystery 
Looks like nic cage 
Mystery: inexplicable matter; a secret; a religious truth revealed. Especially one beyond understanding.
Mystery tour: pleasure excursion to a unknown destination
Life is a mystery tour. We don't know what is next.  
There is nothing mundane about the life of serving Jesus.
Refuse to live predictably, but live with a commitment to the great unknown where He will be waiting in the mystery.  
Eph 1:9
His will, pleasure and purpose are all in the mystery
Isaiah 53:10 
The pleasure of The Lord is saving you.
Daniel 2:26 
There is a God in heaven who solves mysteries.  
At least Peter got out of the boat. At least the disciples got in the boat. Don't live like the crowd who didn't leave the shore. Live like Peter, in the mystery.  
What if I get out of the will of God?
The will of God is easy. Just go where God says to go and come when Jesus says come.
People mess up when they step into the mystery but Jesus did not say go and he's not there saying come.  
The more you know, the more you realize there is to know.  
Solomon 7:4 
With no mystery, there is no fight of faith
Your sovereign hand will be my guide. You've never failed me. You won't start now. Mystery is the sound of prayer and praise. 
At some point, he kissed his wife

With Louie Giglio, I had to force myself to type notes. I could listen to him for hours and not get bored. He might be the only speaker that I don't bore of hearing. 
They had to open the top section on this night. I'm higher up than those people on the side.

There's Louie. He fell off the front of the stage.

Louie Giglio  
No funerals today  
Luke 7:16-17  
Say holy mystery now
Luke 7:11 
Resurrection 
Dead being carried out at the same time as Jesus walked in
Sin doesn't make us bad people. Sin makes us dead people. When you're dead, you've got problems because dead people can't do anything for themselves.
Jesus interrupts funerals.  
Almost fell off the stage


Chris Tomlin and God's Great Dance Floor
Now only 107 days left until I see Louie, Chris, and Hillsong United at Passion Houston!!

Saturday, October 26, 2013

Pyrex Surprise

So, last week, I won an eBay auction for the set of Primary refrigerator Pyrex dishes. I was under the impression that I would get one lidless yellow dish, a blue lidded dish, and two red dishes with lids.

It was supposed to arrive yesterday, but it didn't.

I woke up today not even thinking about it. I went to the box and worked out and then headed to my church where the youth group was working outside for Teens Make a Difference Day. After that, I headed to the Boy's and Girl's Club to see IronE Singleton (aka T-Dog from The Walking Dead) speak.

When I got back home, I subconsciously peeked out the front door to see if my package was on the porch. It wasn't. It was on my bed.

I took it into the kitchen because the box seemed to need heavy duty tools to open it and I don't keep that stuff in my room.
It was double boxed and each item had terribly sticky saran wrap around it. It literally took me an hour to unwrap every piece. 
Voila! Aren't they beautiful?
I opened each item one by one and slowly noticed there was more than I had thought there would be. Instead of one lidless yellow dish, I got two AND one had a lid. I also got four red lidded dishes instead of just two.

I rewrapped them and put them back in the box because I have no where to put them now. I don't really want to use them as refrigerator dishes because while I trust myself with them, I don't trust my family. Plus, if one breaks, I'd rather be the one that broke it.

Friday, October 25, 2013

I Wrote a Book

I have a secret. I think maybe two people know it already.

I'm going to tell you all right now.

I wrote a novel last November. I got the t-shirt and everything.



First off, no, you CANNOT read it. I really don't know if I'll ever let anyone read it. One of the top things I learned about myself when I wrote for my high school paper was that I do not like people reading what I write until it's 100% finished and publishable and I don't foresee that coming any time soon. I also don't like rejection and the best way to avoid it is to not show anyone. I did give my sister the option to read it, but she didn't want to (her loss.)

I didn't write it because my mind was spilling over the edge with story ideas. I don't consider myself a writer. I did it because I'm self-competitive.

"A challenge to write 50,000 words in one month? I can do that!"

There are some parts that give me secondhand embarrassment for myself. Like, what in the world was I thinking when I wrote that? Really? She rolls down a huge hill? Stupid. There's a love triangle? Cliche.

Anyway, it's almost November again. I don't know if I'll participate this year. I had originally wanted to write a sequel, but I have no ideas now. I kind of forgot what I had written about. I shelved the book last December.

I DID have a dream (about a dream) the other night that potentially solved all of the plot problems I had. It was completely unexpected, since I literally hadn't thought about the book in over ten months. I don't think it was a coincidence that it arrived only a month after I rediscovered my love for reading. I'm in the process of fixing all of that now, so hopefully when I'm done I'll have an idea for a sequel.

Maybe I'll be famous someday. If so, it definitely won't be for writing. Like I said, huge hill. Ew no.

P.S. Like I said, you can't read it. Unless you beg. But I probably still won't let you.

Thursday, October 24, 2013

This is a test.

I changed my url to my name jordancampagna.blogspot.com and am wondering if it messed with my email subscribers. My mom I think subscribes by email, so after this posts, I'm going to go log into her email and check!

In case she doesn't, if you do, comment and let me know if you STILL do.

Thanks.

Here's a picture of a cute animal laughing that I had saved on my desktop.


Thursday, October 17, 2013

What Would I Pick?

If there was a fire and you only had time to grab four items, what would you grab and why?

I know it's usually three items, but let's say the fire started in the furthest room from mine...

In no order:

1. Matthew Lewis and Dame Maggie Smith frames
I count these as one item because A) they're right next to each other on my wall, and B) they can be lumped under "autographs."

He also sent a professional photo signed, but I sent these two.
These two homemade pictures frames aren't a big deal, but what's inside them is nearly irreplaceable. Last year, I mailed off several fan letters to some actors and actresses. I got several back, but all except for Matthew Lewis and Dame Maggie Smith were autopenned.

Opening this was the best day of my life.
I figure if they could take the time to hand sign a notecard, I can take the time to grab their frames in a fire!

Last year, I was obsessed with Matthew Lewis. He played Neville Longbottom in Harry Potter. I'm still vying for a tweet from him. Dame Maggie Smith is also fabulous. She is so sassy. I wish she was one of my grandmas. Plus, they're both British and I like all things British.

Note: Michael Gambon, David Tennant, and Matt Smith still have yet to respond. There's still hope, folks.

2. My recipe box
Six months ago, I wouldn't include my recipe box on this. It was filled with mainly generic recipes that anyone could make. Everything changed when I went Paleo.

I bought this beauty on Etsy. I try to stay off of that site because I would probably buy it all if I could.
The labels are the generic "Appetizer," "Soups & Salads," "Entrees," etc.
I can't make anything without consulting my box first. The Bread category is the biggest. I just now moved everything with Gluten to it. I don't want to see a recipe for Cookie Brownies while looking for the Bacon Chocolate Chip Cookie card!

My favorite recipe is this tasty chocolate cake:



3. CrossFit London shirt
I knew I wanted something from London for one of my items and debated grabbing my shirt or a pillow I bought at Primark's. It was a really hard decision, but I wanted something that people could see. I don't think people will come to my house often enough for the pillow to be a conversation starter. Plus, I'm sure I could order another pillow online. The CrossFit that I got the shirt from doesn't ship.

Not the shirt, but the place where I got the shirt! 
Besides, I need something to wear when I return to Europe to signify that I've been there before and am not just a dumb tourist.

4. Pyrex Cinderella Dishes


I got these for Christmas two years ago.
It definitely wouldn't be easy to get these out, but I'd sure try. I use these all the time when I'm cooking. I take them to fancy Pyrex-only parties too. I have other dishes, but I like these the most. They're from the 1960's, I believe.

Now, if there were an actual fire, I can't guarantee that I'd grab any of this. I'd probably actually grab my phone and computer, make sure I had on shoes, and run out the door hoping my room survives.

What four items would you take during a fire?

Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Officially Official!

OH MY GOODNESS OH MY GOODNESS OH MY GOODNESS

In 608 days, I'm going back to Europe! I'll be going with one of my former high school teachers on an EF tour that she's leading.

It is an 13 day trip and it'll go to Berlin, Prague, and the Alps, as well as Paris.

I know I said I didn't really like Paris, but there is no way I'm letting a minor dislike of a city keep my from Europe. At least I won't have to go to Versailles again! It was gorgeous, but not gorgeous enough to go back. That is, unless I went and just explored the gardens. I'd do that. I don't want to see the palace again though.

I'm really excited because a lot of the activities involve WWII, so it's almost a supplement to the class I took in London. I don't know how much I'll remember in two years, but still, it'll be great!

This is our map. The numbers are how many days we're spending in the city. My group is doing the Paris extension, so from Lucerne, instead of going to Zurich, we go on to Paris.
I am definitely most excited about seeing Dresden. We learnt about how it was bombed at the end of the war in my class and I wanted to see it so badly. I will also get to see the 1st concentration camp, Dachau.

This is literally the only hunk of notes I have on Dresden, so we didn't talk about it much. It was enough to make me desperately want to visit though.
It'll be weird having a strict schedule as opposed to being almost completely free to do whatever, but I prefer black and white. I'd rather know exactly where I have to be when.

In Paris, so often it was,
"Well, do you want to do xyz?" 
"It doesn't matter." 
"It doesn't matter to me either." 

I'd rather be told what I'll be doing instead of having to figure it out myself. That way, there's also no fear that whoever your traveling with really does care but doesn't want to say they do. There isn't a choice when it's a tour. That's nice, because I don't like to make decisions.

I just want to be there now. I don't want to wait! At least I have several things to look forward to to pass the time until this though. I have a family cruise, Passion Houston, and spring break.

Passion will be amazing though. It's in February and might be the first time it's been in Houston. Usually it's only in Atlanta. It's put on by Louie Giglio and Chris Tomlin (people who I saw at Hillsong Conf in London.) Francis Chan, Kristian Stanfill, David Crowder, Matt Redman, and Hillsong will be there as well. I think Passion will be the highlight of 2014 and Europe, 2015.

Sunday, October 6, 2013

Fan Days Dallas

Today I went to my first convention. Along with it being my first convention, it was also my first time to road trip without my family. I went across the ocean before I drove two hours south alone. I went to Dallas with Mickey and Patricia to meet John Barrowman at Fan Days. A family from the theatre went too, and I regret not getting a picture because their baby was dressed at 11.

The main reason we went was for John Barrowman. We bought pictures with him that were at noon, so we had to be there before that. We decided to leave at 9. Everything went swell until we got to the DFW area. All the construction got us lost twice AND we got pulled over. There was a faulty brake light.

We ended up pulling into the Irving Convention Center garage at 11:30ish. Then, there was the walk of shame. That was the half mile trek from the garage to the center alongside the cars in line to get into the garage. We laughed at the cosplayers we passed and I'm sure they laughed at us.

The best part was the following exchange:
"Oh look! A Star Trek family!" -Mickey
"Aww, oooh, that kid just ran into traffic. Those parents need to watch him." -Me
"He's a red shirt." -Mickey

The Walk of Shame. Those cars went the whole way to the center.
Once we got in, we got our bands, programs, and schedules. Barrowman photos were almost up, so we rushed to the location. We ended up getting pretty good spots in line, so that was exciting. We weren't in the first group inside, but we were second.

Our sweet programs!
WE MADE IT!
On an escalator
We were last in line for a while, so I got to hold the sign. At least, that is, until someone else became last in line.
While we were in line for John Barrowman, this awesome family was posing for pictures!  They're unfortunately the only cosplayers I took a picture of. My phone was on it's death bed all day. I was the GPS and I didn't have a charger. At 1:00 I was on 40%. I sparingly used it and ended up plugging it in at home at a whopping 12%.
IT'S HIM. OMG I CAN'T EVEN.
We waited in line for about a half hour until it was our turn. It was over before I knew what was happening. He said "Let's cuddle," hugged me, and it was over. BUT STILL OMG.

After taking the pictures, we headed to the Q&A that was a floor above us. When we got there, we ran into our friends Craig and Rachel and got in line with them. I was afraid we wouldn't get seats because it was full, but we did! We got pretty good seats.

It's almost time!

 There he is!
A lot of people asked him about his musical theatre career, so that was exciting. He's a Sondheim guy, so I like that. He also has a lot of funny stories and now I have to watch Torchwood.


This was his reply to being asked to sing Springtime for Hitler.

We were going to get his autograph after, but the line was out the door. Instead, we headed down to the exhibit hall where all the comic book artists had set up shop. I figured I was at my first comic convention, so I had to get a book. It was $1. I thought it was a comic book, but it's just an index of a series. I just picked based on the cover.

My new comic book
After looking around downstairs, we headed back upstairs to get our pictures signed. We picked them up and went and got in line. It was terrible. It was a Disney World moment. You're about to meet the princess and then they say "Sorry, you guys. The princess has to leave so we're stopping the line right here." It happened. John Barrowman had a flight to catch so his line was capped the people right in front of us. It was devastating.

Another goal of mine there was to get my sister Steven Yeun's autograph. I looked. Then I looked again. And again. He was seriously nowhere to be found. I asked people and no one knew where he was. Sorry sis. I tried.

Here's a sign of him.
We decided we'd done enough, so around 3ish, we headed to food. We settled on Cheesecake Factory, so out we went.

I really liked the convention center. Minus the missing Welsh, it reminded me of Roald Dahl Plass in Cardiff.
Dinner was good. I had chicken and ice cream. The sweet potato fries had gluten in them. I really need to stop letting them tempt me. The gluten is worse than the fries are good...

On the way back, we tried to play some road trip games, but it just didn't happen.

I'm sure by now you all are dying to see the picture of John Barrowman and I. It's a terrible angle, but here it is.


Now, for those of you who read all the way through and still don't know who John Barrowman is, here are some videos.



This is a clip from The Producers (2006)


He told us this story in his panel.

He told us this story as well.