nathan jara

I took the new sticks out to the range today for the first time. Mizuno MP-58s for the 3-8 irons and the MP-68s for the 9 iron and pitching wedge to round out my new Mizuno iron set. They are awesome. I had the set custom fitted to my swing. We ended up making the length .25 inches longer, added another layer of tape to thicken up the grips, kept the standard lie angle and adjusted the loft angle to 2 degrees stronger throughout the set. These were most definitely the right adjustments. I was hitting the ball longer and more consistent than ever. I’m sure that I’m getting at least 10 more yards per club, which is a most welcome change. Needless to say, I can’t wait to take them on the course this coming week.

Recently, I have been given the privilege to take a trip to California. I’ll be flying to the San Jose area for this year’s jQuery conference held at the Microsoft Silicon Valley Research Center in Mountain View, California. Seeing as how I’ve never been west of, well, not too far west of good ‘ol PA ;) I’m very excited to be taking the high flying adventure to the Pacific coast. I’ll be traveling with three stooges, I mean, fellow web developers. I’m sure there will be plenty of ridiculous puns, dorky humor, laughter, and general sillyness which should only make the trip that much more enjoyable. Oh, and don’t forget all the knowledge and skills we’ll gain :) I’m hoping to find time to blog my trip throughout the weekend later this month. If you have any recommendations for places to see or eat or things to eat and see, please comment below!

Holy Week, which marks the end of the Lenten season, has always been a favorite time of mine during the church year. I am one who very much enjoys the dramatic, and Holy Week never disappoints. This year was no exception.

Tonight I attended the Good Friday Tenebrae service at The First United Methodist Church of West Newton. It was awesome. In past years, I have attended a combination service which included elements of both Holy Thursday and Good Friday. This year I was able to experience these two dynamic services separately. Tonight’s Good Friday service was especially powerful. The quiet hymns, solemn readings, vivid symbols, and immersive darkness of the tenebrae service provided for me a time to reflect, remember, and re-experience the Passion of Christ. I felt very moved by the recounting of the ancient story tonight. If you believe in this story, as I do, and have never experienced such a service, I encourage you to make a note to experience such a service next year. Or for something even more awesome, just wait and see what happens on Sunday.

Talk about patience…