Moving On Up. . .To Downs

About 15 miles west of Kansas's famed "World's Largest Ball of Twine" is a sign that announces, "Welcome to Downs, Population 824". In this town that boasts two gas stations, one stop light, and an abandoned swimming pool, lies a graphic design company who thrives and has been listed multiple times in Inc. Magazine's "Top 500 Companies" list. For years the Brush Art Corporation has found itself steadily growing in an industry that has been pretty unstable over the last decade. Their secret is that their client base is primarily large agricultural and industrial corporations: John Deere, Caterpillar, Cargill, The Discovery Channel, etc.

Seven weeks into our brand spanking' new marriage, Paige and I found ourselves faced with a tough situation: I had received news that my current employer would be releasing me at the end of October. Our task? Find a job. Stat. And that is just what we did. However, we found it in the most unlikely of places: Downs, KS. One of my groomsmen from our wedding, Ryan Barten, is currently one of the 35 individuals employed at Brush Art and told me some inside information regarding an opening out west.



Beginning October 4, 2010, that small town's population will increase by 1 as I will be moving to Downs. But don't worry, a few weeks later, after she has wrapped up a few things in Overland Park, Paige will be joining me out west in a small town on the edge of Waconda Lake.



We are excited to begin our new adventure together in a place where we know 1 person. But most of all, we are thankful to have been so blessed by God to be able to have this opportunity to work for a company willing to give us an opportunity to not have to live paycheck to paycheck. We also ask for your continued prayers and support on our marriage as we embark upon this new chapter in our lives. Our phone numbers will remain the same, and our current address is still a valid one for about 4 more weeks but then should be able to forward to our new address for the next year or so. Once we have determined our new residence, we will make sure to pass it along. If you are curious (and we know you are) here is a website on Downs. Have a look (it'll only take a minute): http://www.downsks.net/

Feel free to look us up and stop on by if you ever find yourself on the West side of a National Landmark made of twine or need a place to bed down on your way to Denver. There's always room for one more in Downs.

Betchya Didn't Know (pt. 1 of 5)

(This is part 1 of a 5 part series of getting to know little known facts about me - some of these you may already know, some you may not)
I take side streets
If you have never had the privilege of going on a ride with me, well then you're missing out. You will no doubt see parts of the city/countryside that you never knew existed. Now, you may argue that it might take me longer to get from A to B, that I can't drive as fast, or that the streets are too narrow to be purposely driving on them. Well I say to you Mr. Naysayer, "yea, I will indeed continue in my quest of taking side streets."
I do this for 2 distinct reasons:
1. I always, always, ALWAYS get stuck at red lights - ALWAYS (Paige can testify). If you have ever been in the vehicle with me you will understand where I am coming from. I often have many things going on and quickly need to get from here to there in a relatively short amount of time and I swear that the stop lights of the world have a conspiracy against me getting anywhere without having to stop, its true. So to counter their plot I simply avoid them. I take side streets so that I don't have to interact with the stupid Red-Light Army that is out to get me.
2. I seek adventure, exploration, and oddities. I love discovering things. I do this wherever I am, not always intentionally, but usually this is true. This past summer I earned the nickname 'Adventure Steve' because of how I was always wondering off and exploring the new places we were at (Plus I even own a pair of adventure shoes!). I take side streets so that I can discover the rawness of the place I'm going through. I also love things that are odd and out of the ordinary. As a kid I was totally into Ripley's Believe It or Not and things of the sort. And I still enjoy stumbling upon weird and unusual things - and how could you do that if you stayed on the main road the whole time? You couldn't. You just couldn't. I mean think of where all of the weird stories that you hear in the news take place...not in the main cities, they always take place in strange, off-the-beaten path places. Yes, it may take longer. Yes, it may seem silly. Yes, I may have to stop way more often for squirrels, children, or little old ladies - but these are small sacrifices when it comes to the opportunity for exploration.
Now you know.