Thank You: C3 Church

Thank you to everyone involved at C3 Raleigh and Clayton. You all have been so welcoming and loving to me during my stay in Raleigh. I'm not sure if many of you know about this, but I was truly reborn during my time in North Carolina. I was having a rough time coming to terms with my move to Raleigh, I didn't know why I was being seperated from all of my loved ones, and I turned to God for help. I attended C3 Church and my spirits were lifted. And after my first small group (Connect Group), it all came together. I realized why I had come to Raleigh: to find God. And boy did I ever! My life will never be the same. In fact, I have a new life. And I owe special thanks to C3 Church for helping me find my life. You will all be in my prayers. Thank you all so much.

We are beggars all

There is no limit to the crap that I will post on here. Mini-album review? Why not!

Thrice recently dropped Beggars, a quick turn around from The Alchemy Index, Thrice's four disc concept album that encompassed the four elements of nature (Earth, Wind, Water, and Fire). After recording such a focused record, Thrice decided to put out something slightly more natural, enter Beggars.

After listening to the album for a few days, I am (once again) very impressed. Thrice have yet to put out two similar sounding albums. This time around they deliver an array of songs that echo a very clean and natural sound; lacking the distortion, keyboards, and heavy mixing of The Alchemy Index and Vheissu. Vocally, Dustin Kensrue is as raw and powerful as ever and his lyrics are meaningful and intriguing. It is also important to note that this album isn't as heavy as previous releases. Comparing it to any of Thrice's previous albums, I would say that it is a mixture of Air, Earth, and Dustin Kensrue's solo album Please Come Home. It is a great album for Thrice faithful and newcomers alike.

All you big-shots do swagger
And strive with conceit
Did you devise that your fray would be fought?
If you've been raised in a palace
Or live about on the streets,
Did you choose the place or the hour you'd be born?
Tell me what can you claim?
Not a thing
Not your name
Tell me if you can recall
Just one thing, not a gift, in this life?
Can you hear what's been said?
Can you see now that everything's graced?
After all
If there's one thing I know in this life
We are beggars all

Back to N5

I have decided to change the title of my blog to: From N5 to NC and back to N5

Why? Because I am moving to London in a month! Yes. I applied and have been accepted into Arsenal Football Club's 2009 Gap Year Program. The details of the program can be found here.

Why am I doing this? I am crazy? Aren't you getting paid?

Maybe I am crazy. But it makes a lot of sense to me!

First the foremost, I am doing this in order to spend some time with my beloved family in North London. As many of you know, my mother's side of the family lives in London and I have only been able to spend small amounts of time with them in the past. So naturally, I have been dying to get across the pond for quite some time. And with the state of both the U.S. and English economies, working was not looking likely. I enjoy working in information technology, I really do. I have a great job and work with some tremendous individuals. But my real passion is football. This program is an opportunity to possibly forge a career out of football. This is a dream opportunity for me, one I could not pass up. I figured I would go ahead and give it a shot. If it doesn't work out, I will gladly go back to my desk job. I have wanted to live in Europe for a long time. Maybe it is something I need to get out of my system, who knows. I'm trying to figure it all out here.

And if worst comes to worst. I am 23 and I have my whole life to slave away at a desk, working for the man. Haha. As a good friend of mine said, "It's all about life experiences." You only live once! Take a chance, break the mold, put your self at a little bit of risk (gasp) for a potentially great reward. I am tired of chasing safety; I am ready to chase a dream.

But I will be back in a year, I am sure. Hopefully with an accent, so I can score a sweet wife. So everyone grab a web cam and I'll meet you on Skype!

I'll make sure to eat a crumpet or two for you.