Jordan Rippy

Today, I graduated from Southeastern University with a Bachelor’s of Science in Pastor Ministry. I am quite relieved to finally be out of school and excited to see what “the real world” has to offer. My time at Southeastern was great, and it’s surreal now that it’s all over. The ceremony was good, and it was great to have all of my family in town. Tomorrow we’re all heading to Disney World for a day of family enjoyment. I’m sure it will be funtastic. As for now, I’m going to bed. Ir’s been a long day. After graduation the whole fam had lunch together and then drove to Sarasota for church.  Special thanks to my mom and dad for always being amazing.  Also, a huge thanks to my beautiful wife, Kristin. It’s hard enough to be an over committed, full time college student, it’s way harder to be married to one.  And here’s to you, Southeastern. It’s been fun.

Here in the great stats of Florida, we have to pass the College Level Academic Skills Test (CLAST) before graduating. It’s the most pointless thing I’ve done since moving to Florida. It takes an entire Saturday and you have to pass each section. If you fail a section, you have to retake it until you pass it, or until you’ve tried three times, then you just get a waiver. What’s the use of a test that can be waived?

Anyway, I took it last fall and (of course) failed the Math section. So, I re-took it about a month ago and just received my results. 295 is a passing score. It’s official. I passed.

The countdown starts today. Ten more school days until graduation. I only have class on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and there’s only five more weeks left in the semester, so ten more days an I’ll be free….I can’t wait.

I’m graduating from Southeastern in less than two months. During my nearly four years in Lakeland, these are the places that I’ve found to be the most unique and/or enjoyable. Tell me what I’ve missed.

1. Palace Pizza - Absolutely the best pizza around. It’s because they use Grande cheese. It’s run by an Italian family who moved from Italy to New Jersey to start an authentic pizza joint. Somewhere along the line they ended up on the corner of Main and Kentucky here in Lakeland.
2. Subs N’ Such - A small sub place on Florida Ave. This place has been in the same location since the 70’s. The owner is there every day and treats every customer like they’re his favorite regular. This guys really knows how to do business and he is ridiculously passionate about subs.
3. Silver Moon Drive In - A great throw back. There’s nothing like watching a horror flick in the comfort of your own car. It’s located somewhere off 92. Google it.
4. Orange Bowl - A great bowling ally. They have really good cosmic bowling, and the best bumpers in town. The bumpers are computerized so they raise and lower depending on whose turn it is.
5. Lime St. Park - This is the best park in Lakeland. You should go really late at night. Why? You just should.
6. Jimbo’s BBQ - This place has been serving amazing B-B-Q since 19**. There’s a bowl of fantastic homemade pickles at every table, and if you’re a huspuppie person, you definitely have tot check this place out.
7. Lake Hollingsworth - I’m not a big walker, but Hollingsworth is really nice.
8. $2 Theater - They play movies that have just left the theater in a “Mugs n’ Movies” format…Round tables, food, and drinks during the movie.
9. S&L - An old school diner from the 70’s. They serve amazing burgers (which are huge) for quite the bargain. Make sure you have some greenbacks though, because they’re a no-plastic business. Cash only.
10. Lakleland Motor Speedway - I know, it’s a stretch. My friend Chris and I went and watched a bunch of amateur drag racing when we first moved down her . We were out of our element, but it was fun.

Does anyone have something to add? Restaurants, parks, stores…Anything?

Each Friday, Southeastern has religion chapel. This service is designed specifically for religion students, and is generally a panel discussion on a particular topic of interest. Today, Dr. Robby Waddell was responsible for religion chapel. He recruited Chris and I to help him produce a Tonight Show like presentation. Dr. Waddell is currently working on a book that will advocate contemporary Biblical translations, such as The Message. More specifically, it explores humor in the Bible and the loss of humor in linguistic translation.

So, today Dr. Waddell played talk show host, Chris was the band leader, and I was the announcer. It went really well. The audience was very responsive to the humor, and the message was clearly communicated. Chris plays sax, so we called his one-man-band “Chris Moore and Sax Appeal”… At one point he was being hassled by a guest and I said, “Hey! That’s saxual harassment!” It was unscripted, but it got a great laugh. I’ll post some pictures as soon as Shea finishes editing them.

Southeastern has placed a “Fall Tree” in the center of the new cafeteria. However, this “fall tree” is, in fact, simply a Christmas tree with fall decorations on it. I am 100% opposed to decorating too early for any holiday, especially Christmas. I love Christmas. I cherish Christmas. Growing up my home was a varitable winter wonderland at Christmas time. That said, it is a season to be celebrated in the right time. Now, Southeastern vehemently denies that this is a Christmas tree, maintaining that the fall decorations make it a “fall tree”. Southeastern says fall tree, I say fall treason.

I have chosen to shun this “fall tree” by averting my gaze until mid-November. Mid-November is the appropriate time to appreciate and unveil Christmas decorations, and I refuse to look at the tree until then. I implore you, Southeastern…Avert your gaze.

PICTURED ABOVE: (L) Fall tree, (R) Me using my hand to shield the tree from sight.

Craig Groeschel is the lead pastor of LifeChurch. He is also becoming quite well known for his blog. Today, Groeschel continues discussing vision in a series of posts based on his book Chazown.Today’s post is also based on Southeastern. Groeschel talks about the growth of the school under the vision and leadership of Dr. Rutland. Check it out here.

Old Testament History
Romans
Artist in the Church
Hymnology
Theology II
Class Piano II
Student Ministry Practicum
Applied Guitar IV

I am relieved. (grades pending)

Growing up, I loved the weekends just like every other kid. The school bell would ring at 2:45, mom would be there to pick me up, and thus began the relaxation. Perhaps I would go to a friend’s house on Friday night and stay up late playing some Mario Cart on the N-64 or have the parents drop me off at the Rave for some sweet PG movie action. Saturday, I would wake up around nine or ten (I used to have a hard time sleeping in during the school year because I had to get up so early during the week). Whenever I woke up I would head down stairs and watch the usual NBC Saturday line up which (then) consisted of Saved by the Bell, City Guys, and Hang Time. After about an hour and a half of TV I may doze off again, only to be awakened by a knock on the door from a local neighborhood friend who just wanted to shoot some hoop or go exploring.

But now, not so much. This weekend looks a little more like this:

FRIDAY
8am - Exam
10am - Exam
2pm - Exam
4:30pm - Leave for Orlando
6pm - Meeting in Orlando
10pm-12am - Leading worship at a prayer meeting in Orlando
1am - Arrive back in Lakeland

SATURDAY
8am-12:30pm - Group lesson at Cleveland School of Music (Two more months!)
3:30pm - Leave for Sarasota
5pm - Sound check / Rehearsal in Sarasota
7pm-9:30pm - Lead worship at Victory @ Sarasota
11:00pm - Arrive in Lakeland

SUNDAY
6:30am - Depart for Orlando
7:30am - Set-up, sound check, rehearsal in Orlando
9:30am-11am - Lead worship at The Well
11am-12pm - Tear down at The Well
1pm - Arrive in Lakeland
2pm-8pm - Cleveland School Recital

Bottom line…I’m very tired and I have been sick for like two weeks. Monday I am going to collapse. This has literally been the busiest / hardest semester of my life…Sorry this post doesn’t have the usual humor and entertainment value as usual. You’ll hear from me Monday and I’ll be in a fantastic mood. School will be out. Life will slow down. Keep checking in, because pretty soon I’m going to post about a DVD player I just bought, and it is going to be a gas.

That’s pretty much the one word that can describe the last ten days or so. Last weekend I led worship Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at out-of-town locations. It made for some really early mornings and late nights in the road (as pictured below). I know all of you regular readers have been on the edge of your seat wondering what could possibly be keeping me from blogging over the last couple of weeks. Life. It’s been busy.

Things are starting to slow down. It’s exam week, so while the stress is not completely gone, the class schedule is decreased. I “triumphed” in my first of several exams today. It was class Piano II and it was crazy hard. Yesterday I practiced for hours upon hours. This whole semester has been a complete whirlwind. Not a whole lot going on right now.

Kristin and I had our first laundry-mat experience. We are in the market for a washer and dryer, but have yet to find one. While we’re on that subject, we’re also (still) in the market for a car…Kristin totaled hers a couple of months ago and we have been a one car family since we’ve been married. It has been very manageable since our schedules are fairly similar and Kristin works at the school. However, that will soon change when school ends this Friday.

Back to the laundry mat…It was good fun. It was very hot. Interesting how the laundry mat is like a community. The lady who ran the place said that she had known many of the children who were there since they had been born. Everybody knew everybody. Except us. That’s okay though. We accomplished our #1 goal which was: do laundry. Kristin had a separate goal which was: hold stranger’s children. She succeeded.
Here’s a bit more information about my Class Piano II exam if you care. If you don’t, stop reading. My class piano teacher is nice-ish. She’s not nice but she’s not mean. She takes piano very seriously. More importantly, she takes class attendance seriously. Even above that, she holds practicing the piano as close to personal holiness as one can. Anyway, she doesn’t believe that I even deserve to have hands because I don’t spend enough time practicing…SO yesterday I literally spent hours and hours and hours practicing only to fall painfully short of her standard of perfection in any of the areas in which I was tested. The good news is that it was my last piano class… …

More updates on life and exams to come. More pictures too. I am a firm believer that a blog without pictures is like a traffic cop with no arms. It’s there, and it’s entertaining, but it just doesn’t quite have what it takes to get the job done.