Boulder Beginnings

New Things All The Time

2010-07-12T12:40:00.003-06:00

Well, it seems I haven't written much here for a while. Does that mean I have become all that Boulder had in store for me? Doubtful. But there is no doubt that my time in Colorado has changed me (for the better, I hope).

Now living in Denver, but still working, playing, climbing, running, community building, serving, and enjoying Boulder every chance I get.

I have started a new blog, a bit more focused, called Inspiration Briefcase . You should check it out. It is currently the avenue where I share stories and insight about leadership and impacting the world with practical stories and lessons for those who desire to think differently and become a leader not merely of word and thought, but of action and deed.

VoSnap! Update

2007-08-05T01:05:00.000-06:00

Many of you have been asking me to keep you up to date on the develpments
with VoSnap. The most recent update says that there will in fact be a
Founders' Beta release this Monday 8/6! I am very much looking forward to
seeing a functioning product. For more details read the developers update at
www.vosnap.com.

In the meantime, the Biz Dev. Group met last Monday to further discuss
monetization models to begin narrowing our focus for the first profit center
launch. This is a discussion what I expect will be ongoing and will be
somewhat guided by the functionality requirements of the dev team and their
willingness and time available to handle such requests.

The corporate structure is evolving, stay tuned.

Vosnap! It's ALIVE

2007-07-17T10:56:00.001-06:00

Well, it seems the work of a weekend has yet to be seen in its full glory by
most of the world...but it is coming. The company I spent an entire weekend
working on is still in the womb of the developers, but growing rapidly.

The Founders of VoSnap.com are a tenacious group of entrepreneurs who will
ensure the technology to aid in "quick votes" of your friends or co-workers
is developed and launched. Our Beta release date is 1 week away, July 24th.

You can stay up to date on the achievement of milestones by visiting the
VoSnap! Blog on the Vosnap.com homepage. Oh, while you're there, sign up to
be the first to use the application once it goes live!

If you were too risk averse to shell out $600 for the new technology of the
iphone, don't miss your chance to adopt VoSnap...It's FREE!

Something to Blog about

2007-07-08T02:13:00.001-06:00

Well, as you can see by my limited postings...I don't write much here. Maybe
I'm too private of a person and I keep everything in, or maybe I'm too
afraid of what others may think. I do tend to write when something new and
exciting comes up, so here goes...

I joined a group of about 70 other entrepreneurs for startup weekend in
Boulder. We have been spending most of the last two days discussing,
developing, and designing the newest company to come out of Boulder.
VoSnap began Friday 7/6/07 and we will launch our product Sunday 7/8/07 at
11:59pm.

VoSnap will revolutionize group decision-making.
Take a look at www.startupweekend.com for the newest updates prior to the
launch, or signup at www.vosnap.com to sign-up for an email notification
when we go live. Also, search VoSnap in youtube for some group videos and a
quick video ad spot.

Be the first to VoSnap! Please let me know what you think.

someone says, "life is like a box of crayons..."

2006-07-21T16:33:00.000-06:00

Boulder Beginnings
A dear friend of mine previously threatened to pull my blog link from her page if I didn't update soon. So, for you Mandy, here I am.

I have resigned myself to the fact that I am not a blogger. I am ok with it, but I find some strange intrigue in the online world resulting from the click click click of one's keyboard in the wee hours of the morning. What about blogging gives us the freedom to express thoughts and attitudes that we wouldn't dare express verbally to another soul? Does it allow me to feign a belief that no one will read what I write? Or rather that I am trying to be real in a world that so often forces the reality of one's life so deep below the surface that he forgets it is there? Regardless, I think personally I am still too concerned with what any one of the hundreds of people that know me may think if I were really to bare all on my blog. That isn't meant to be an excuse for my poor updating skills, rather a self revelation that I hope to reconcile (though maybe not through blogging--sorry Mandy).

Whew, I didn't realize I was in for that insight today as I sat down to click a few quippy and hopefully interesting sentences.

I don't dare try to update from my last post till now, no one would ever read it all. I suppose I'll just hit a few high points.

A major thorn in my side has recently subsided. My attempt to purchase my first rental property turned into an ordeal that neither myself nor any of my advisors could have ever predicted. After three months of dashed hopes from passing deadlines and returned money I nearly gave up hope. I am now, however, landed in the great state of Indiana--now I just have to find a renter for the house. This is the beginning of my adventure in the world of real-estate. Sure, not my first bout, but the first major step I have taken on my own. Here's to good fortune...at least for a while.

During the entire process I have met a slew of interesting people. I am realizing more and more what I like so much about life, about getting out there and taking risks (as mild as they may be for my own life--I'm surely no forrest jump); its the people that I meet along the way. Those who have interesting stories to tell, be it of 5 years of travel in India studying under the Dalai Llama before a move to Fort Wayne, IN, or the single professional who is relocating sure to find a dwelling that will suit his pleasures as a neat freak. My thoughts now are turned to this question: What does my life look like as a witness of Jesus Christ as I interact with these individuals? How am I a vivid representation of His love and mercy, all the while being a good financial steward. That, I will be endeavoring to resolve.

On another front, I have recently come face to face with my elementary years. Not in the way most would think. More specifically, the color wheel. Trying to determine my stance as a bold color, over a pastel, or dry erase marker is quite the interesting dance. It is seemingly a big game, one I have avoided quite well for a while. But recently I find myself beginning to be more intrigued with the rules of engagement that in the distant or recent past. So far things are looking up, we'll see how things progress as I venture down this road.

Oh, I mustn't leave out the frequent visits to the Grizzly Rose -- Denver's most popular Country Bar. I've become a line dancing fool.

If you're lucky there will be another post in the near future. Don't hold your breath.

Feeling Alive

2005-08-03T00:07:00.000-06:00

So it's been a while since I've added anything here, not because I haven't thought about it, moreso because I've been living with my head down, nose to the grindstone. Much the way I believe most of our American culture lives. I've been reflecting lately on the ancient words of a wise man who said, "the unexamined life is not a life worth living."

Maybe more of the reason I haven't added anything here is because I have been letting life lead me. Now, that's not to say that I haven't been pursuing various things (too many things, some say), in fact many would say "he's taking the bull by the horns and making life what he wants." But honestly, of all the taking the bull by the horns I've done the last few months, I don't know that I can say I truly felt more alive than I did tonight.

I spent the evening with two friends, a relatively quiet evening, but a philosophically intense one nonetheless. I honestly don't think it gets better than when two or three friends can get together to discuss matters of life, with different perspectives to boot, while sitting on a rock formation overlooking a twinkling city below. In terms of my faith, it is nights like tonight that completely rejuvenate my desire and passion to serve the God I so often claim to know and love, but who also I second to my schedule, pursuits et al. That is to say, discussing matters of faith with a man who understands the basics tenets of Christianity but subscribes to no particular set of beliefs is quite the insightful challenge to a man (me) who operates from a Christian paradigm most of the time. But what was discussed tonight were matters of the heart. All religious terminology extracted, the matters were of those relating to the heart. Compassion, goodness, desire for faith in a higher being, the nature of man, the list goes on. Regardless revealing my heart in regards to such issues brought a feeling of living that I have not yet found to be substantiated by our current culture of Wednesday night cell group meetings. They seem a little too "churchy" for me. Which may not be bad, but I feel that if we are really here to engage the culture of boulder with the person of Jesus Christ, then why the heck do we always meet together in our living rooms?! Let's engage the Boulder community as a whole, lets get outside of our comfortable culture of a box that we have created and really get to know hearts of people in Boulder.

I must retire to a soft bed, as an early morning at the Boulder Shelter awaits.
Lastly, I don't quite know what the hyper-links buried in the text are, they just showed up...it turns out, they're advertising for various websites. This is your warning, and heed your warning, there's no need to click on them, I did it--yippee.

Adventure with a Volvo GLT Intercooler TURBO

2005-06-21T23:36:00.000-06:00

This story is not for the faint at heart. It entails some gutsy maneuvering, conversations with a drug smuggling hippie, faux sheepskin, a little elbow grease and a 1982 Volvo GLT Intercooler TURBO. This is the story of how my friend Wes acquired his dream car, at a price any of us could afford.

For months Wes had driven by a seemingly abandoned property home of a shanty, and a beautiful old, dirty, rusted, flat tired, grass grown up all around Volvo. A few days ago he decided to inquire as to story behind the car. Come to find out it is owned by the father of the lad living in the primitive shanty on this narrow property on the outskirts of Boulder.

Bob is his name, and he is the drug smuggling hippie. He is a child of the 70's and used to make drug runs from Tucson to Boulder in the very Volvo Wes was lusting after. After a short conversation Bob had decided that he liked Wes and wanted to help him out. You see, Wes has a girlfriend from Sweden, who doesn't have a car (in fact, not even a driver's license). He is hoping to secure a car for her, and our new friend Bob happened to be the provider.
Bob gave Wes and I the run down on things that might be wrong with this car, which was good to know.

We tried to jump-start the 1982 Volvo GLT Intercooler Turbo, but to no avail. Bob left us to the job of getting the car off the property...and that we did. A quick trip to the local NAPA auto parts store provided the
necessary component, a new battery. That got her running...as Wes pulled her out of the long grass, we realized the tire was flat, so we proceeded to swap it for the spare. Only to find out, the spare was flat too!

We made a trip to the closest gas station to fill up the spare and returned to give this pretty little thing solid legs to stand on. A little rough at first, but after a few starts she'll purrr off the first crank every time.

It was quite the adventure, a short story can hardly do justice to the reality of the situation that was my life today. Wes and I have a lot of
work ahead of us to get this car into shape, but we aren't afraid of dishing out some TLC.

The Community of Roots

2005-06-11T02:14:00.000-06:00

The Community of Roots
Originally uploaded by nilesemerick.

These faces comprise the community with which I live my life. It was outdated nearly as soon as it was taken, as more people have joined us in our pursuit of the teachings of Jesus.

A new friend

2005-06-11T02:05:00.000-06:00

Walking on Pearl Street Wednesday night after a very enjoyable evening at my new favorite coffee shop, Amante, I met Cisco. I assume it is short for Francisco, as he spoke with a Spanish accent, and taught me a few words in Spanish as well.

As I was walking with my friend Annie, Cisco approached us and asked for some spare change. He explained he was in desperate need of some boos for the morning. I appreciated his honesty, though it immediately sent my mind to thinking that I shouldn't give this guy any money to feed his habit. I talked with him for a few minutes, and ended up giving him all the change in my pocket. Was it because I wanted him to "medicate" himself with alcohol? No. Actually, I don't know what my motivation was, but regardless, it showed him that I cared and created space for us to really connect. We talked for nearly 20 minutes and I quickly grew to love this man.

I have had a burden for the homeless for a while, but at the same time Ihave remained somewhat fearful of engaging them in relationship. I believe that the fear stems from a lack of understanding the culture of the streets. I plan to continue stepping out in faith, knowing that Jesus loves these people as much as he loves me, and that he would not be fearful, disgusted, nor too prideful to talk with and relate to these people.

Cisco and I ended our chat with an embrace. He told me he loved me. Regardless of whether or not it was the boos speaking, I looked him in the eye and told him that I loved him too. I felt like I was truly able to show him the love of God that night. And when I told him I loved him, it came from a well deeper than me. I hope to find him and spend more time talking with him. In fact, I would love to get to a place where I could have him over for dinner. Time will tell.

The FlatIrons at 6AM on my way in to work

2005-06-11T01:55:00.000-06:00

FlatIrons at 6AM on my way in to work
Originally uploaded by nilesemerick.

Worthy of a second look, or even of pulling off on the side of 36 to capture this image. It was taken nearly 4 weeks ago now, but it is deserving of space here so you can see what I see.

Musings on life in community (adapted from a recent email)

2005-05-29T22:14:00.000-06:00

Community, a fitting thought, yes, as I am residing in possibly the most communal part of our country, “The Republic of Boulder,” but I digress. Community is something that I think is becoming more and more a part of this whole “Emerging Church” era. And I think that is good. But I fear that it is a much deeper issue to resolve than a few people talking about the importance of community. Let me explain; in my oh so humble opinion much of the modern church (20th century) has been structured heavily around Sunday morning and Wednesday night services. These are good things, don’t get me wrong, but I think that the church that Paul writes about in Acts didn’t view their local body of believers as a group of people that they met with a couple of times a week for worship, accountability, and prayer. You see, I am beginning to think that the community that is talked about in many of the Epistles has so much more for us than just the structured “containers” of corporate worship and Wednesday nights. Having been raised in the church, I feel that the perspective for much of my life has been to segment the communities of my life. My church friends from my friends at school, or my athletic team. There was never a whole lot of opportunity for crossover. I think that this perspective only leads one further down the path of “faking faith.” I’m trying to wrap my mind around what life would look like if I were genuinely the same person on Sunday mornings as I was on Monday mornings. Now, that’s not to say that I live some warped double life, but I would say there are some differences. Mainly the things I talk about, the language I use, and the image I portray of myself. Moreover, what does community look like when God is engaged in times other than just the “containers” established by the church? Is it weird if that happens and I am with people with whom I don’t go to church? Wouldn’t that be what authentic living is all about? More than anything I want to be authentic. I don’t want there to be this schism in my mind between people in the church and people out of the church...believers and non-believers. It is so easy to have an us and them mentality, but why? We are all fallen, none of us is better than another. Often I feel like people who haven’t been raised in the church, or aren’t people of a faith in Christ are more genuine and authentic than many people in the church. Have you ever wondered about that?

What if I invited a friend of mine from work to a time of “accountability” with a few guys from church. Would that be weird for my friend? Would it be weird for my friends from church? Would it be weird for me? Why? If this life isn’t about me, why does it matter how I feel? If I truly want to be authentic how can I so segment my life so as to never have to really reconcile one aspect with the other? I want the culture of my life to be such that I relate and and am 100% authentic in a church community as I am in the rest of community (taking account for Paul's “becoming all things to all people, for the sake of the gospel”).

More to come soon

2005-05-28T17:36:00.000-06:00

Bear Mountain

2005-05-05T22:02:00.000-06:00

Boulder Beginnings Niles Blog

My first blog image! Yippee...(It is a good thing I have a genius brother who can escourt me through the arduous process of uploading an image to my blog...)

Pastor/Coach/Mentor/Preacher/Rabbi Ramin Razavi and I atop Bear Mountain this spring. The view behind us is Boulder, CO. This is a great peak to summit and gain a higher perspective on the place God has called us to live and work.

It was quite the arduous task getting up and down with 12in. of snow...lots of scrambling was necessary. To get down we had to sit down and slide.

Well, the primary reason for this post was to get over my stupidity when it comes to posting images...hopefully I'll use this blog morenow. Now that I know how to do this, expect more.

More snow!!! Some other things too.

2005-04-29T21:58:00.000-06:00

After a beautiful week of weather, we have been greeted once again by
winter's cold chill. At present, a blanket of nearly 8in. of very
thick wet snow covers EVERYTHING the eye can see. The trees are
bending beneath the immense weight of the snow. The blossoms will not
awaken, as the kiss of bitter cold and a sheath of snow has laid claim
to their beauty. My vegetable garden may not make it through this
either. I am hoping that the gestation period has lasted just long
enough to not damage the seeds I planted last week. I am hoping to
harvest some peppers, cucumber, mint, and sunflower seeds before I
move in August.
Today was a pivotal day for the awareness of my photography in
Boulder. I was contacted by the owner of Cafe Sienna requesting my
work to be hung in his cafe for the month of May. Short notice
yes...but I am mostly prepared (thanks to my previous shows). Like a
wise man once said, "Success is where Preparation and Opportunity
meet." I believe that to be ever so true. In addition, the editor of
a local newspaper, the Colorado Daily, emailed me to request that I
join the ranks of the photographers for the summer. It is just an
internship, but experience in photojournalism nonetheless. I will
work two days per week...and we'll see where it leads. I am excited
to have the opportunity to grow my photojournalism portfolio.</p><p
class="mobile-post">In other news: I left my lights on at work today--had
to get a ride home in the snowstorm. I started Thoreau's "Walden Pond" this
morning--a favorite. I labored through the first few chapters of I
Chronicles (brutal reading...unless your a geneologist). And, there
were probably a few other things I did today too...but those of note
have been mentioned above. I hope you feel adequately updated.

Bedroom Suit!

2005-04-25T21:53:00.000-06:00

p class="mobile-post">I acquired 2 more pieces of furniture today...after a long day
shopping at all the furniture stores in town I finally found exactly
what I wanted--a used futon with dog hair all over it, and a faux
leather 1970's electronic recliner! Ok, so I didn't really shop at
any furniture store...a generous lad in Louisville is giving away all
of his furniture to move back to Boston--I was the lucky recipient of
the aforementioned pieces.
p class="mobile-post">We'll see if I like
sleeping on the futon better than sleeping on the
floor...I may revert back to "camping out" every night in my sleeping
bag if the futon doesn't suit me. And the recliner...well...we'll
see.