All my past posts will obviously remain, but I’m not going to take the time to reformat them. So if you read any and wonder why pictures and/or videos are halfway missing then you’ll know why.

I’ve got a variety of post types planned. From my videos, to other people’s creations.. I just want to talk about things I think are awesome. I walked into one of my favorite places today, the iThemes offices, and was greeted by a new addition to the entry room: A sign which read, “Make People’s Lives Awesome.” I hope this contributes.

I also am excited to see this change over time. I know that from my past blogging experience, the way the content evolves over time is just fun to watch unfold.

So, welcome to my blank slate. I hope you enjoy it as much as I will.

To get you started, I’ll end with this clip – the inspiration for the game everyone now loves to play when I’m around.

- Ted

It isn’t everyday that someone asks you….

“Hey, what is it going to take to get you to come out to Iraq this summer?”

But that’s exactly what Jeremy Courtney asked me back in December.

Prayer. Thoughts. Discussions. Deciding not to participate in dear friends’ wedding (love you Greg and Keely!). Ten minutes of awkward silence after bringing it up with my mom.
And now…

I’m going to Iraq this summer because thousands of kids are dying of congenital heart disease.

The Preemptive Love Coalition (a link you should MOST DEFINITELY click on and explore) is a non-profit organization in Iraq seeking to remedy the problem. I could try my own explanation, but this does it much better than I ever could:

I’ll be an intern with PLC, living in Sulaymaniyah, Iraq for two and a half months this summer.
My primary role will be shooting and editing video alongside working on the website.

[Click the maps to enlarge]

So let me back up and explain what has happened since the conversation with Jeremy, which hopefully will give you a better understanding of why I’m going.

I called my dad, told him about the opportunity and his response was something along the lines of, “Son, I’ve been praying for something like this since before you were born.” In another words: “Here, let me hand you confirmation number one.” He advised me (wisely I might add) to not bring it up with my mom before I was a little further down the road with the PLC. I met with Jeremy again in Waco on the morning after my last final in December, and then drove home five hours to Piedmont, Oklahoma with a lot to pray through and think about. The next day, I went to lunch with my parents and brought it up with my mom. Now before I go any further, let me defend my mother’s response with a simple phrase: “She’s my MOM.” So after I explained to her what was going on, she was awfully quiet for a few minutes. And rightfully so. Her words finally were, “I want you where God wants you.” And that pretty much sealed the deal for me. I was able to tell Jeremy that I was definitely up for applying two days after Christmas and he asked that I fill out all of the internship paperwork so they could make sure this was a good deal for them. And now, by the grace of God, I am going to be headed to Iraq this summer with the Preemptive Love Coalition!

There’s obviously a lot more to this story than I gave you in this summation, and there is tons more waiting to happen as I prepare to head to Iraq.

I would like to ask that you A) Pray pray and pray, B) Sign up below to receive emails from me and C) Follow this blog (bookmark, google reader, etc.).

You can sign up below to get emails, or you can email me saying you would like to be added (ted@tedvid.com) and you can even comment below, tweet me, facebook me.. etc. I’ll make sure you get on the list!

Finally, I would like to thank you for taking the time to read through this and thank you for your support. I’m so thankful to have an awesome supportive family behind me (Mom, Dad, Caleb, Tori – that’s you guys), and it’s also nice to know there is an even bigger community than that supporting me in numerous ways.

To donate please go to preemptivelove.org/Ted

To God be the glory, great things he hath done;
So loved He the world that He gave us His son;
Who yielded His life an atonement for sin;
And opened the life gate that all may go in.

“…for the subversion of terrorism by love,”

Ted

Sign up for emails here:

Let me know what you think of our new intro.

Ted

It has mainly been motion graphics work so far, but there is some other video-related stuff that I’ve been working on for them as well. Hopefully this summer we will begin doing some really cool stuff merging Vlogs, Tutorials, and Community Building. They’re based out of Oklahoma City, Oklahoma and so since I’m in Waco, Texas it’s hard to help with any of their in-house videos and live shows for now, but it’s a great company that you should definitely take a look at! Anyway, I’m happy to be able to work with them and here are two of the promotional videos I have created so far for their Builder Theme (This is the Theme I have for my site) and Flexx Theme.

That being said, I have decided to install a second WordPress directory at tedvid.com/video. Why, you ask? Well I have an idea in my head of how I want it to look and work, and I figured that it would be best if it were left independent of the navigation already in place. I plan to post all of the videos I produce/edit/direct/etc. there, and hopefully that allows a clean atmosphere in which to view my videos (I guess this only applies if you find what I create entertaining in the slightest). It already exists and can be viewed by clicking this made up word: youareawesome. It is currently semi-based on a concept a friend of mine, Brad Ulrich, has implemented into a subdirectory of his site called adbrad.com/snacks which he calls a “bite-sized” version of his blog, but applied to just my created video.

I also have to say, that after tinkering a little with the Builder Theme from Ithemes, I feel as if I have a lot more control and knowledge over web design than I really do. This could be dangerous.

Alright, enough with the blog post writing.. I’m off to go write a script for a video that I can put over at tedvid.com/video.

- Ted