Sleepless in Hamilton

Mentally exhausted from running "broken fax" on Saturday, I proceeded to play some bball right after. I'm a lazy guy who moves only when necessary, so I don't know where I got the energy to play. I was pretty pooped afterwards, but the day was far from over. One more game to go at 10, and I hoped it would go better than the trio of games we had in the afternoon.

"Capture the Stixxx" as Johnny and I had dubbed it, was pretty slow at first. Some defenders were too close to their flags, and the playing area was too big for some. The game moved along much quicker when Johnny and Janette suggested we remove the option of playing defence. That was a relaxing time for game leaders, or at least for me anyway. I hardly moved, just stood at the same spot, chilling with jailbirds and guards, and talking trash over the walkie talkies.

Afterwards, back in my crib, I recorded my thoughts in my journal, then got out to chill while the night was still young. Robyn wanted to play board games, and I did as well, so we went hunting for monopoly. When we did find it, Robyn decided to roast marshmallows and left me hanging. I had fun with the younger guys though. The game got intense quick, and I was got broke with Justin and Nick duking it out against each other. It was 4:45 am then, so I decided to go sleep. Outside my house, Eliot talked me into chilling with them instead, and I pulled out a chair beside them. The conversation died down pretty quickly, and we just sat and slept around in silence. Then Roz came out and kept me company for a bit. We took a walk around the houses, and she went to sleep at 5 something.

So there I was, alone in the dark. The sky was still dark, but in the distance a lighter shade of blue can be seen to the east. Going into retreat, I've felt quite distant from God. Today, I was told it was possibly the devil trying to pull me down as I help out with church stuff. Pretty likely scenario now that I think of it, since there were lots of downs, and few ups during the past weeks. So alone in the quiet morning, I bowed my head and prayed. I figured I shouldn't wait for God to come to me, but instead approach Him. It was a great time of prayer, but I don't think it went on for even half an hour. Spiritually refreshed, I sat in the quietness of early morning waiting, admiring the dark sky.

Minutes later, my sleeping companions woke up and decided to catch the sunrise. We went to the tennis court which was already occupied by Will, and sat on the dew-y benches, shivering and half asleep. I was feeling only slightly chilly though, since I was up the entire time. When the sun finally came up, it was too bright to look at, and I decided to head back for a shower. The anticipation was more fun than the actual viewing of the risen sun.

After the shower, I fell asleep for around 20 minutes and woke up at 7:53 or so. I went back out to where the chairs were and plopped my sleepy self down beside a few people. I remember RoboRich and Sarah there, but I'm sure there were others. I said some things to Rich, and he ran off. I don't remember what I said, but I hope it was coherent and non-offensive. After a few moments to push my sleepiness aside, I started talking to Sarah and got to know her a bit. That was cool. I like meeting new people.

I skip what happened next for another time. Back home, I pulled out my keys to open the front door, and realized I still had my retreat house key. Oh shoot! Oh well. Andrew said not to worry about it. My cousin and uncle were in town from HK, and Sunday was their last day in Canada. I couldn't sleep, because that would be beyond rude, so instead I stayed up to play Dance Dance Revolution with my lil cousin. I didn't know I had such amazing dance moves. Not to mention my amazing agility and my unexplainable burst of energy to bust a groove on those slippery dance mats. I thought I'd be dead tired, but I was holding up all right. By the way, I've never pulled an all-nighter before. This was an experiment. Long story short, I didn't sleep until past midnight on Monday. Which means I had been awake Saturday at 7 until Monday at 12:10 or so. Wow, didn't think it was possible for a lazy man like me. More on retreat later. If you actually read this entire post, say so in a comment for the previous entry and you just might win a prize.