Not only are the seasons of the weather changing but also seasons of my life too. That’s Us Inc hired a great friend of mine that I have worked with in the past to focus on supporting the current software clients and also selling to new clients. Him and I are collaborating together with ideas on client retention, niche market selling, software enhancement ideas, support documentation and training techniques. Previously, this was all my responsibility in addition to managing developer tasks, innovative website design, ad template design, social media and blog management, search engine optimization and signup tracking all while taking a step back to view the entire project from a 10,000 foot level to change directions with technology advancements and marketplace focuses.

When I choose to focus on something, it’s all or nothing. Maybe all or 10%, but if I tip over that 10%, it’s 100%. If something is worth your attention, why not obsess over it to make it great.

Marlyse and I have been leading a Life Group for the New York Dream Center and now we’re passing that baton to another couple, actually 2 couples. So, we built up the momentum to then be able to split our group into two groups. We are stepping back from leading a Life Group due to the new roles we get to explore a little deeper.

Marlyse is leading more mission trips in NYC for youth groups, college groups and life groups that are looking to make a difference in New York’s inner cities and areas that need assistance. She is making more connections with other organizations and collaborating everyone together.

She is also building up the community development programs in Chelsea, East Harlem and Rockaway Beach by finding new connections for food donations so we can continually give out large quantities of food to these areas. This will build the outreaches past the amount of volunteers that are weekly volunteering! We will have more food than we can manage unless people are able to assist.

I have taken on the role of Band Director / Worship Team Developer. As the Dream Center has expanded to a new campus in East Harlem, 3 services need worship teams and we want to split the roles between different musicians so it will not make for a seriously long day. I am organizing the songs, members playing and practices. Also, I am organizing Worship Workshops to build up new members to be part of the Sunday Service Teams, Mission Trip Teams and Worship Night Teams.

In addition, there is a rehearsal space / recording studio that a group of us are building up to begin renting out the space as an income generator for the Dream Center. We are looking forward to being the best studio space in all of Astoria, as I think it might already meet that title!

Need something good to listen to?
Oceans – Hillsong
Playlist of Dream Center songs

The post Seasons Changing appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

The post Tales from the Tunnel – Morning Math appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

We left our apartment at 1pm and got to the 1 train stop at 42nd St around 1:30pm. From here, you can see the Times Square “bow tie” but it is all fenced off where you cannot get in. The bowtie is where Broadway and 7th Avenue cross between 46th St and 44th St.

Here is where the fun begins. “Where am I supposed to go so I can get into the bowtie for New Year’s Eve?” No one working the event has that answer. Not any of the officials, not the news anchors you see, not the businesses nearby. Ask anyone and everyone will tell you the same answer of “I don’t know.” I am going to be pretty detailed with street names and cardinal directions. If you cannot follow along, please enjoy the map below! I’m also referencing time stamps which go along with our YouTube video below.

We walk east to 6th Avenue (because all of 7th Avenue and Broadway are closed) and we walked up to 49th Street. (0:25) There is supposed to be a security checkpoint up here but we walked on 49th from 6th ave over to 7th ave and did not see any checkpoint. So we walk down 7th and got stuck in a “bull pin” of people between 47th and 48th streets. Asking everyone, “Is this the checkpoint?” No one with answers but plenty of confused and angry people pushing forward. The problem is, we could not even see the ball from this point of view so we really did not want to get stuck here.

We crossed the street (still on 7th Avenue on the west side) where we were fenced in. Still unsure where we needed to be, suddenly the cops removed the barricades and a running of bulls commenced. People flooded the streets still in use by vehicles and now were unable to move due to thousands of people surrounding them. (1:05)

By now, we have slowly baby-stepped into an area where a big TKTS sign obstructed our view. (2:00) We needed to move to the left. So, anytime there was a shift in the crowd (cops moving us or cars needing to pass), we pushed ourselves to the left as if we were being pushed. We were able to clear that sign.

Marlyse saw an NBC reporter looking at the crowd and talking with people, asking where they were from. Every answer was another location and the reporter seemed uninterested. (3:00) Mar knew they were looking for someone from NYC. She made eye contact with the reporter, they asked and found out we were from New York and they interviewed her putting her on national TV! If you want to be on TV, wear a costume, be overly enthusiastic, stalk down reporters and talk to them or be a New Yorker.

Then, we saw the bull pin we were first waiting in on the East side of the street actually WAS released to go into the bowtie. Then they fenced off that area and then released at least 7 blocks of pedestrians to fill the street where we were. I asked numerous cops if they were going to close the streets. They all said no.
They do not close the STREETS but the close the AVENUES! Wrong question I guess.

What should I do before getting into the mob of people?

Go to the bathroom. Empty every part of your body and as for preparation, do not drink a lot of anything on the 31st. It will be cold out so you will not use much energy nor get really dehydrated.

What should I take with me?

I saw people with their iPads taking photos. Don’t be that person. Use a camera. Plus, you will have 6 strangers touching you at any given point. And those 6 strangers changes out at least every hour so you will have at least 100 people that have touched your body or grazed your pockets. You may get to know them but not enough to know if you are getting pick-pocketed. Wear a jacket with inside pockets and keep all items in the inside pockets that you want to keep.

Bring snacks! Beef jerky, nuts, fruit snacks but nothing messy. I brought a Subway sandwich and still had them put tomatoes and Southwest sauce on it. That is messy when you are (again) touching so many people. I ate it anyway and people gave me some space. I wore a Camelbak filled with water (do not do alcohol, as cool as you think you will be sneaking alcohol, you are standing for 10+ hours with nowhere to go).

Take a tall folding stool that can fold up and you could hook it on your belt or something. I brought pain medicine for my back and legs just in case (I am sounding like I am 90…)

When should I get there?

We got there at 1pm and I think next year we will get there at noon. Get into an area and look for the availability to advance to the bowtie. If you are not in dire need of being in the bowtie, I could see getting there at 2pm.

Let me know if you plan on going this year or your experiences while you were there!

The post How to do Times Square on New Years Eve appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

Tuesday started with a team of about 15 people passing out bottles of water, granola bars, wet wipes and fruit. Thursday there were well over 50 volunteers scaling up to 22 floors to deliver care packages, buckets of water to flush toilets, Dominoes pizza and sodas and find out other needs people have. The database of apartments started out around 200 and now has grown to 482 apartments. Some apartments have 1 person and some have 6 in them. We will define how many are in each apartment today.

Day 1: http://youtu.be/-WIaxWFFd0Y
Day 2: http://youtu.be/RztnAmsp7fs
Day 3 will be combined with Day 4

My friend Kayli said the following:
Every door is a story, a need… “There’s a lady downstairs paralyzed on one side, can you check on her?” …”The gentleman than lives there is quite old and usually has a nurse; he hasn’t had attention since Sunday…” …”Can you check on my mother? She’s on the 12th floor.” …”Can you bring me insulin? I’ve run out and I’m diabetic.” …”Do you have anything to eat?” …and we’re gonna keep knockin’ on each one.

My friend Jesse said the following:
Many people pitched in, Including Chuck who was a rough character, it was God appointed because he was on the same bus that we road from 160 blocks up. He was genuinely interested in our well being. He even offered us a knife for protection. We met him again at the site where his auntie stayed. Chuck pointed to a group of about five men and said “those are my goons there, they are watching out for you.” He even told us about how God saved his life after being shot through the chest. After handing out the supplies and knocking door to door making sure the needs were met we handed out bags and bags of candy (it was Halloween) to all the children so they could have some joy.

We have been using our Honda Element to transport supplies but we are low on gas and there are empty stations all around the city. All 5 boroughs are empty and I would have to drive past Yonkers to fuel up. The George Washington Bridge is so backed up that someone with supplies in New Jersey was trying to cross for 2 hours and still did not even reach the bridge. They are going to bicycle over the bridge with a carrier full of food and water to get to us.

The Dream Center has gone to Costco, Target, BJs and other stores every morning to load up on supplies – buying entire pallets of water and food.

If you feel you have the ability to donate to this cause, you can go directly to the Donations page of the Dream Center. You will be able to see where your money is going to with my recap videos. You are making an impact on thousands of less-fortunate people during this time.

The post Hurricane Sandy left Chelsea housing with no power or water appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

Most of everyone I know were not so lucky. Some do not have power all the way to one couple has a destroyed car. Marlyse and I are jumping in the church van to go around, assess everyone’s damage and help in whatever way we can.

Here is some footage I filmed from Monday night (10/29/12):

• 6pm walking the dogs on the Riverside Bridge :: http://youtu.be/1xcFdBs2MhU
• 7pm walk around Broadway in Washington Heights to see trees down, stores open, signs flying away :: http://youtu.be/E6-5erBTINo
• 10pm walk down to the Hudson River :: http://youtu.be/1WiMUoM7zSM
• 10pm walk on Broadway to see more signs down :: http://youtu.be/CKJajvscVOY

I will take more footage when we are in Chelsea and closer to downtown to help others.

The post Hurricane Sandy – Washington Heights Aftermath appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

While walking out of the store, there is now a line to get into Trader Joe’s wrapped around the building. People are asking if the line is for the grocery store or if there is something special going on. “Nothing special, just filling the fridge!”

As I patiently wait for Sandy to knock out my internet, power, water, heat or gas, all I see is some sprinkling and gusty winds up in Washington Heights. 5pm on Monday night and there is not anything notable yet but I will capture what I see with my GoPro when I walk my dogs later on.

The post Hurricane Sandy – yet another storm to hit NYC appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

One time Marlyse and I went over to this lady’s small apartment to hand her some food and she was so glad we were there. Rhea wanted to be so hospitable to us that she took a few cups, rinsed them out and filled them with soda she just bought. I could have said, “She did not clean this cup with soap. There is no way I am drinking out of that.” If I said that and rejected her offer, I would have missed the very moment the Dream Center has been working towards. We have been working daily to break down people’s walls and allow us into their lives. This offering is more than, “here I have some soda and want to share.” In fact, what Rhea was saying is, “I trust you enough to allow you into my home and my personal space.” If we said, “no thanks” we would have been replying to her trust, not her soda.

When first starting the food run, people did not trust us because they thought we were cops. They could not figure out why we were offering free food to them. Most thought we were trying to case out each place to see how many people lived in one house. After the “leader of the neighborhood” which was the owner of the corner store realized that we were not a threat but we were genuinely there to help, many walls fell down over the houses we visited daily.

While handing the meals to each family, we would ask, “What can I pray for today?” It was not until the walls came down that people would allow us to pray for them. Then, many people started inviting us in to eat with them, pray with them or just talk with them. This is how the Dream Center made its initial connection to the community. Selflessness and willing to take peoples trust without rejecting it.

The post TBDC: Putting yourself aside appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

After unbolting the heavy green door, I use my foot as a stopper and crack the door two inches open. “I’m really hungry, can you give me some food!” Shorty has been here before and he knows that we are the Tampa Bay Dream Center who passes out meals donated by Metropolitan Ministries…but we do that during the day. Wearing rugged and dirty clothes, he smells of alcohol but definitely acts like something else is in his system since his eyes are wide open, his actions are quick and he obviously does not know what time it is. His face shows a long white beard, tanned leathery skin as if he never goes inside and his eyes display an emptiness of desperation.

“Shorty, you know it is like 3am right?” To his response, “No it’s not. It’s 9pm, but I need food right now!” This Florida summer night proves to be hot and humid even though the sun has been down for a long time. The streets are active with people leaving the clubs since our house is one street over from the club row called Ybor City. A lot of people park right around our neighborhood even though it is not a safe environment to leave your car or walk back to it alone. To save ten dollars in the parking garage, these people risk it.

“I will be right back Shorty. Have a seat on the bench and I will be right back. Sit still, ok?” He complies and sits very fidgety. I go to the fridge which a lot of us share. Currently, I am one of eight guys living here. In a few months we actually grow to twelve in this four bedroom house. I find some leftovers that are in a container labeled “Brett’s,   God is watching!” I tried to have a sense of humor while trying to keep grubby hands out of my food. The guys would joke and say without a pause, “Brett’s God is watching!” without the pause and implying my personal God was watching… probably not that funny unless you were there and saw this label on everything I owned.

I bring Shorty some warmed up food and a large cup of water. “Maybe I can flush this mess out of his system”, I say to myself by kind of pray over the water. I hand him the plate and sit on the bench with him. While sitting up on the elevated porch of the house, I watch numerous people stumbling back to their cars that are well over the alcohol level to drive. Shorty is oblivious to them as he is shoveling the food into his mouth just as fast as he can. “Shorty, do you mind if I pray for you while you are finishing that.” He snaps his head quickly towards me replying, “YES, pray for me! I need all the prayer I can get.”

At this point, I do not know what Shorty got into tonight but by the way he responded to an offering of prayer, he realizes that he needs a higher power to change him. I pray that his system is wiped clean as quickly as God wants him clean and that God urges him to go somewhere else if he would end up in a situation leading him back down the wrong road. I pray for a couple of minutes before he leaves but I am glad I was able to do that for him at that moment.

The post TBDC: Early Morning Desperation appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

Official 2012 Olympics Torch:: Currently a Buy It Now of approximately $41G US dollars, this Aussie hopes to squeeze every cent out of their investment. Here’s a little tidbit of knowledge for ya. All Olympic torch runners were offered to purchase the Olympic torch that they ran with for $500. That, my friends, is a no brainer. Buy the torch if you ever get that opportunity.

2012 Olympic Torch and Tracksuit :: With a starting bid of only $8,600, this listing from Spain has not only the Torch but also the Tracksuit and badge worn by the runner.

2004 Olympic Medals from Athens :: This auction located in Greece is for official Gold, Silver and Bronze medals. My first thought is, “OK, who did they steal these from?” These are unawarded medals. Nearly 3,000 medals were cut but not all of them were given out. This auction is a Buy It Now of $25G US Dollars.

2 – 2012 Olympics Closing Ceremony Tickets :: At only $7,000 for two tickets, how can you say no to that. You can even purchase up to 4 tickets from them.

That does it for my list of items on eBay. If you want to take  a look for yourself, you can go to this eBay link for 2012 Olympics.

.

.

The post Actually Listed on eBay :: London Olympics 2012 Edition appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.

What if what I am currently in is actually an augmented reality? I’ll be a bit transparent and say that it took about a year for me to stop thinking about things in a Matrix kind of way. Fast-forward to 2012 where graphics are even more realistic, movies are now shown in 3D and even 4D.

When I was not absolutely sure of what I wanted to do with my future, I was easily swayed by the influences that media had on me.

Three weeks after its premiere, I saw the Dark Knight Rises in the theater. I know for a fact that this movie did not get the movie-going response that was expected due to James Holmes walking into a Colorado theater during a midnight showing of the movie while killing 12 people and injuring 58 others. He declared himself as “The Joker” to authorities while the gas-masked gunman threw a smoke grenade and then began shooting with 3 different guns. This seemingly “was a great kid growing up” was charged with 142 charges. One of each pair of the 24 murder counts is for acting with deliberation and intent, the other for displaying “an extreme indifference to the value of human life.”

The even more disturbing news in addition to James Holmes shooting spree inside the movie theater is the fact that people are rallying in support of Holmes, calling themselves Holmies. What could cause such a mindset that people would want to go through with an act like this or even support an act like this?

Anytime you hear about someone doing a disturbing act, you will find followers of them. After the September 11th attacks, there was a 15-year-old that was in support of Osama bin Laden that he stole a small plane and crashed it into a Bank of America building in Tampa, Florida.

One of the first things the news latches onto is what kind of music these people are listening to. After the Columbine shooters in 1999 went through the school killing classmates and then committed suicide, all eyes were on Marilyn Manson and Rammstein.

I state all of this information to ask a simple question. What media influences you?

If you say that none of it, that is a crock. Do you watch the news every day or read the paper every day? There are keywords and phrases used in the news that is conversational hypnosis techniques. The job of the news is not to tell you all of the facts but to keep you watching and coming back day after day. It is a show. It is a production that draws your attention while giving you facts from the point of view they wish to deliver them to you in order to keep you watching or reading.

What is your point?

I am bringing this up not to simply regurgitate things you have already heard about. It is simply a suggestion to open your mind about what you are allowing to influence your life. Music, movies, games, shows, news… things like this can have positive or negative impacts and unfortunately in recent months we have seen a slew of abnormal behaviors and I credit the media for it.

To take it steps further because maybe you feel you are already well-balanced, what about the people around you? You already have a good head on your shoulders, so maybe there are people close to you that do not have a steady head on their shoulders.

James Holmes used to be surrounded by people and then became a loner. That means that friends and family ceased to be part of his life even so much as to keep him accountable for things he decided to do. If one of his previous classmates took the time to talk to him and when decided to drop out, actually give him a call, would that have been enough to prevent this situation from happening? Hindsight is 20/20 and no one on earth can answer that question. But there is that “What if” factor.

What if someone had gone out of their comfort zone to simply ask him how things were going with school?

Personally, I miss a lot of opportunities to be selfless. I can tell you time after time that I should have spoken with someone but I would rather go about my own business. Not only in school, but family members, church members, people updating upsetting Facebook posts or even people on the train.

Selflessness could save someone’s day, or even someone’s life decisions. Pay attention to those around you because they may need you more than you need them.

.

The post Paying Attention to Influential Media appeared first on :: Brett Rush ::.