spring breaaaaaaaaaaaaaak

Well, now that even Mark's and Priya's spring breaks are ending, I figure I should post all that stuff I've been meaning to about mine.

From the first Saturday to Thursday I was in Los Angeles with Wesley folks doing an SSP spring break, where we worked on the church that's used for Project in the summer and took some field trips and hosted guests in an effort to learn more about South L.A.

That was pretty amazing since it was like being an SSP camper again — doin' the work, seeing the sights — but with a group of people who really "got" what we were there to do early on in the week, definitely earlier than high school campers usually "get it."

And on top of all that, it was not just a Wesley trip but a joint Wesley trip where I got to see my UA Methodist peeps too.

Then, from Friday to the second Sunday, I was on either side of the U.S.-Mexico border studying immigration issues in another Faces on the Border seminar. And I think I got a lot out of my second go-'round on this trip, revisiting some issues and being more deeply challenged to take action.

But both trips I took over spring break had some common threads, which were pretty cool...

in-state, international, intercultural connections

Both parts of my spring break were marked by all sorts of all sorts of crazy coming-together moments. Both trips included people from both ASU and UA, and both had some international or intercultural components.

Out in L.A., the night that we had dinner at the Dockweiler Beach also happened to be the night that there was a big Persian New Year celebration at the same beach. In fact, the new year partiers set up their sound system and "dance floor" area of the beach (dance sand?) right next to the fire pit we were using. So we got invited to dance with the revelers, and some of them joined our non-dancers around the fire.

As Kyle Frank said later, it was basically like we danced our way to world peace.

Then in Naco, we had two British ladies accompanying us for our Faces on the Border seminar, and it was all pretty international since we were studying U.S.-Mexico border issues. But in a culminating moment, we also went on a procession along the border Sunday that ended where the border wall stops and turns into a low vehicle barrier. There, there was a bilingual, ecumenical worship service held on both sides of the border. That, too, was pretty sweet.

Anyway, here are the random and assorted quotes and memories from both parts of my spring break:

ASU and UA Wesley doing SSP in L.A.

photos from this trip • videos from this trip

"Precious Memories" / Pastor DiAnn's "pastoral joke"

Girl Scout / Cookie Sunday!

"Oh good Christ!" –woman on a bike upon seeing glass rain down from a second-story window

movie themed rooms: the Titanic room, the Hobbit bathroom, the Saw room

"[chomp!]" –me

Cookies in Bed!

sledgin'

sledgendary

fawesome

famazing

Team Luke!

Brandy quotes

on South L.A.: "It's not terrible!"

on Orange County: "That's a whole different place. They have beaches — that aren't contaminated."

Swimsuit vs. boardshorts

the Brian voice: "They're different!"

"Brian, you're like the Car Talk guys, but gigglier." –Sara

"You are like all the little boys I ever babysat — all rolled into one." –Stacey

talking crap and then having the person show up

Erin Lee: Do you guys need any help?

Kyle Frank: No. We don't need any help — at all. We don't need anyone else on this roof.

cancer-causing material

make-your-own hamburgers

Suzannah, the love child of Kyle Frank and me

Kyle Frank: I figure if Brian's good enough to have a love child with, he can have my hot dog.

me: In fact...

wafers in the eye... and bra

Justin Timberlake

Going to Wesley at UCI

Sarah, the UCI campus minister: "OK, so 'bar' means 'son of,' so Barabbas is the son of Abba, the son of..."

my inner monologue: "The son of ABBA! You were the dancing queen, young and sweet, only 17..."

Stacey = the girl with the laugh

Suzannah = "commentary girl"

Tobie the spoon stealer (and returner)

"It will going to happen!" –Erin Lee

"Cookies in Bed," to the tune of "Dick in a Box"

douche nozzle

"There are things I could be dared into putting into a sermon, but that's not one of them." –Sara

"Give us a holler. We pay you top do$$ar."

HootersIkea

To Debbie Gibson or not to Debbie Gibson?

"when you say you're in a van with a bunch of other church folk i picture a cross of the patridge family and the manson family" –Matt Stone on Friday

Yep... Partridge Family singalongs and Manson Family sledgin'.

Ridin' dirty in the church van